It was supposed to be the Gold Cup, Champion Chase, or even the Champion Hurdle, but Bob Olinger eventually won a Cheltenham championship in Thursday’s Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle.
Four years after filling the role of the sport’s most exciting young prospect, Henry de Bromhead’s mercurial star turned back the clock with an unlikely Stayers victory.
In the process he filled in the last blank on Rachael Blackmore’s Cheltenham championship CV and underlined the theory that while form is temporary, class really can be permanent.
There was plenty of that in how Blackmore smuggled him from the rear of the field to pounce on the defending champion Teahupoo at the final flight.
Asking for more public cash to boost prize money is worryingly shortsighted
Grand National runner Celebre d’Allen died with severe respiratory infection
Grand National party shows no sign of ending for jubilant Mullins
Willie Mullins readies Ayr squadron as handler zeroes in on British champion trainer title
Both horses are owned by Brian Acheson but the 8-1 shot rather than the 7-4 favourite carried the first Robcour colours, suggesting the depth of sentiment towards ‘Bob’ that once had the businessman describing him as his ‘third child’.
Acheson, De Bromhead and Blackmore had earlier combined to win the opening Mares' Novice Hurdle with Air Of Entitlement; but Bob Olinger’s attraction-grabbing has always been elite level.
“He’s an incredible horse, he had such a reputation a few years ago, things didn’t work out as well as we thought, but to see him come back and do that is amazing,” said the Co Waterford trainer.
“I remember I was at a preview a few weeks ago, and I wouldn’t look at the betting, but I was like ‘Oh my God he is 66-1′ and I just couldn’t believe it.
“Even last year he was so good in the race on New Year’s Day. He won the Ballymore, then we had a couple of funny old years with him, but he is back now.
“You always hope they can win another big one like this, but I never foresee anything. You live the dream and maintain them as best you possibly can,” De Bromhead added.
Bob Olinger is now a triple-festival winner, but he hadn’t won at the top level since struggling up the hill to win here in 2022 and only due to an infamous final fence fall from Galopin Des Champs.
It was all very different from a year earlier when Bob Olinger was an outstanding winner over hurdles and appeared to have the racing world at his feet. Muscular issues were found to be at least partly a reason for a stalled career, but perseverance finally got its reward.
It wasn’t unexpected by some either as the winner had been 20-1 and got backed down to 8s.
For Blackmore, who is joint top rider for the week so far with Paul Townend and Mark Walsh, the Stayers crown gets added to Gold Cup glory on A Plus Tard, last year’s Champion Chase on Captain Guinness and a pair of Champion Hurdle victories on Honeysuckle. For good measure there was also Envoi Allen’s 2023 Ryanair.
Envoi Allen was back in the same race again but that veteran could manage only third behind the hugely impressive winner, Fact To File, this time.
Freed from the task of chasing Galopin Des Champs over three miles, Fact To File was much too good for his opposition and regenerated hopes he might yet step up to a Gold Cup challenge.
“I do agree that he might have been the horse to give Galopin Des Champs a battle tomorrow in the Gold Cup, and he was in it, but we felt it was better to bide our options. He’ll probably be a Gold Cup horse next year,” Willie Mullins said.
Fact To File was JP McManus’s 81st festival winner and number 82 didn’t take long as Jagwar, the 3-1 favourite, was too strong for Thecompanysergeant in the Plate handicap chase.
It looked all over like number 83 for McManus in the concluding Kim Muir as Johnnywho and Derek O’Connor cruised to the front at the second last. An awkward jump at the last stalled his momentum and the Irish horse Daily Present pounced to win by a neck.
It was a fourth festival success for Co Wexford trainer Paul Nolan, 20 years after Nina Carberry rode his first, Dabiroun.
Alan O’Sullivan, brother of the late Michael O’Sullivan, briefly threatened to challenge on Walking On Air but the horse faded to finish 11th.
Not much is a bargain when you’re forked out €740,000 but the value of a Cheltenham Festival winner was stamped all over Caldwell Potter’s success in the Jack Richards Novice Handicap Chase.
Bought out of Gordon Elliott’s yard at a world record price for a jumps horse sold at public auction, the grey’s relatively lacklustre career since joining Paul Nicholls prompted more than a little ridicule.
However, Caldwell Potter’s dominant display from the front supplied Nicholls with a landmark 50th festival success and gave the ownership, including Alex Ferguson, a priceless Cheltenham victory.
The former Manchester United manager enjoyed a festival double on this day a year ago, but he was quick to remember John Hales, in whose yellow colours Caldwell Potter ran, who died at the end of January.
“When you see that today, it doesn’t matter the price – it’s inexpensive,” said Ferguson while jockey Harry Cobden added: “We got a bit of stick when this horse came along obviously, because of his price tag. But he’s proved everyone wrong – he’s cheap now, isn’t he!”
Irish-trained horses edged the day with their home rivals 4-3. It leaves the visitors ahead going into the final on 13 winners to eight.
Thursday’s Cheltenham attendance of 53,366 was slightly down from last year’s 53,918 but significantly better than the previous day’s crowd of 41,949. That was the lowest attendance figure returned at the festival since 1993.
