The 2024 Cheltenham Festival, which runs from 12 March until 15, is one of the most iconic events on the horse racing calendar in the United Kingdom.
It’s not just English-born and bred horses competing in the 28 races scheduled to be held over the four-day event. Horses from other nations will also be racing. Let’s dive straight in to discover where some of these horses come from.
Which countries are known to produce the best racehorses?
Many countries are known for their fantastic breeding skills when it comes to creating champion Thoroughbred horses, and countries like England, Ireland, France, America, Australia, and New Zealand are the main ones often associated with having produced some of the sport’s most memorable horses.
Different bodies govern horse racing across the globe, and individual regions tend to have a specific type of track based on the climate and geology. The horses bred in those regions are usually bred to race in those conditions and will perform better than horses from other parts of the world.
For example, most European racing is conducted on grass (also known as turf). Other regions may have horses bred for sand or dirt tracks, and horses tend to stick to a certain type of track.
What are the main countries that the Cheltenham Festival Horses come from?
The 2024 Cheltenham Festival, from Tuesday 12 March until Friday 15, will host 28 individual races – 7 races per day, and the main countries where the horses come from are the following:
- Ireland
- England
- France
The 2023 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, Galopin des Champs, who is also the current odds-on favourite to win the Gold Cup again this year on today’s most trusted Cheltenham betting sites, was one of several Cheltenham Festival horses born in France.
A look at where some of the other horses come from
Let’s now take a quick look at some of the runners at the March 2024 Cheltenham Festival’s biggest races and find out where these horses were born. Examples include the following:
- Horse name: State Man. Country: France. Race: Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy
- Horse name: Teahupoo. Country: France. Race: Stayers’ Hurdle
- Horse name: Galopin des Champs. Country: France. Race: Gold Cup
- Horse name: El Fabiolo. Country: France. Race: Queen Mother Champion Chase
There’s also Fastorslow (France) who will be running in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup Chase. Ballyburn (Ireland) is expected to run in the Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle (Grade I) (GBB Race), and Benson (Great Britain) is expected to run in the Handicap Hurdle.
You also have Shishkin (Ireland) running in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup Chase, Pied Piper (Great Britain) in the County Handicap Hurdle, and Noble Yeats (Ireland) in the Stayers’ Hurdle.
What are the odds of Galopin des Champs winning the Gold Cup for the second year running?
Anything can happen in horse racing, and it’s not always the favourite that wins. However, most people think that Galopin des Champs can make history and win it again this year. It starts at 15:30 on Friday (day 4).
To discover just how likely this horse can win again, the best thing to do would be to look at the odds. For example, Galopin des Champs is currently priced at 5/4 in the fractional odds format, meaning it has a 44/40% implied probability rate of actually achieving this.
In comparison, the second odds-on favourite to win this race, Fastorslow, is currently priced at around 4/1 (with a 20% IPR), and the third odds-on favourite, Shishkin, is currently priced at around 6/1 with a 14.30% IPR. In other words, it’s a relatively safe bet, but don’t forget that no bets are safe.
Final note
If you think Galopin des Champs has a good chance of winning but aren’t quite sure if it will make history, then you may want to place an Each Way (E/W) bet instead of an outright winner bet. Most sites with EW betting will pay if the horse doesn’t win but comes in second or third place instead.
