No sporting event anywhere compresses so much drama, emotion and character into a single venue as the Cheltenham Festival. It wasn’t just an extraordinary Gold Cup — in that six horses jumped the last with a chance of winning and at least two jockeys will go to their graves believing they were denied a victory that should have been theirs: the blanket finish had to be investigated fully by the stewards before the result was confirmed. What kept crowds of 60,000 or so entranced were the endless series of back stories, of comebacks that worked and comebacks that didn’t, of opportunities taken and cruel disappointments.
Jim Culloty, who had ridden Best Mate to his three victories in the race and who trained the Gold Cup winner Lord Windermere, hadn’t produced a winner for 196 days until his Spring Heeled won the day before. Davy Russell, who rode Lord Windermere, had been dropped as its top jockey by Michael O’Leary’s Gigginstown Stud. He kept his mouth shut about his demotion and responded the best way possible by riding a treble on Gold Cup day, including two for Gigginstown.
Others were not so lucky at a meeting that brought four horse deaths, including that of the brilliant Our Conor, and carnage among the jockeys. Daryl Jacob, top rider for Paul Nicholls, was desperate for a Festival winner. He was in tears when he drove Southfield Theatre across the line in the Pertemps Final only to find from the photo finish that Fingal Bay had beaten him by a whisker. On Gold Cup day Daryl missed winning the first on the fancied Calipto when his stirrup leather snapped. He finally gained his Nicholls Festival winner when he drove Lac Fontana up the hill to take the County Hurdle but the Force wasn’t with him.
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