CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL NEWS: FESTIVAL HUNTERS’ CHASE TO HONOUR HRH THE PRINCESS ROYAL
Cheltenham Racecourse announced today that the Hunters Chase’ staged at The Cheltenham Festival has been named in honour of Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal.
Popularly known as the “Amateurs’ Gold Cup” and staged over the same extended three and a quarter miles trip as the chasing’s Blue Riband itself, The Princess Royal Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Steeple Chase takes place immediately following the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup on Gold Cup Day (Friday 13th March in 2026).
The Princess Royal won individual Gold at the 1971 European Eventing Championships staged at Burghley and she was also part of the British Eventing team at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal and in the 1980s rode as an amateur jockey, successfully partnering winners both on the Flat and over jumps. Since 1985, The Princess Royal has been President of the Riding For The Disabled Association.
The Princess Royal is a frequent visitor to Cheltenham Racecourse. On the first day of The November Meeting at Cheltenham in 2015, The Princess Royal opened The Princess Royal Stand, which was constructed as part of the racecourse’s £45 million redevelopment. The Princess Royal’s daughter, Zara Tindall, has been a member of the Racecourse Committee at Cheltenham since 2019.
The Princess Royal Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase is the second race at The Festival to be named in honour of a member of The Royal Family. The two-mile Champion Chase was renamed the Queen Mother Champion Chase in 1980 – the year of the 80th birthday of The Queen Mother, grandmother of HRH The Princess Royal. The National Hunt Chase, which is run on the opening day of The Festival, will no longer carry The Princess Royal’s name and return to being run as The National Hunt Challenge Cup Novices’ Handicap Chase.
Guy Lavender, CEO of Cheltenham Racecourse, said: “The Hunters’ Chase at The Festival is a contest which recognises and celebrates the very origins of our great sport.
“We therefore feel it is very appropriate to stage it under the name of Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal – an outstanding all-round equestrian who has excelled in a wide range of disciplines."
