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The Festival meeting at Cheltenham has a special place in the heart of any horse racing fan but the strength of Jumping and its huge appeal can be found from Perth to Exeter and from Plumpton to Aintree.

Jump racing is truly going through a special time with a wealth of exciting horses like Kauto Star, Denman, Punjabi and Masterminded, a tremendous group of trainers at the top of their game like Paul Nicholls, Alan King, Nicky Henderson and Venetia Williams,and a classic weighing room with riders like perennial champion AP McCoy, Richard Johnson, Ruby Walsh and ‘Choc’ Thornton.

Attendances in 2009 have defied the predictions of financial gloom and are actually up. Four of Britain’s top eight attended sports events in 2008 were – Royal Ascot, the Cheltenham Festival, The Derby and Grand National meetings.

It is also proving a draw for sponsors as shown by Matalan’s delighted response to their first involvement in the John Smith’s Grand National meeting. The race itself highlighted the thrill of ownership, evident in Vida Bingham’s joy when her 100-1 Mon Mome won the race.

No wonder it all makes such great television whether for BBC or Channel 4, or on racing’s two dedicated satellite channels Racing UK and At the Races – put simply no other sport has as much live television coverage in Britain.

And the sport is facing up to the challenges of a changing world with the exciting Racing for Change campaign – backed by owners, trainers, racecourses, jockeys and the betting industry – determined to take our great sport to a wider audience of all ages. It is a tremendous time to be involved in a great sport with excitement all year round.

Jon Ryan, Communications Director, British Horseracing Authority

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