Champion Hurdle: Cheltenham Festival RacePhillip Carberry and Sublimity jump the last hurdle before winning the Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy 2007 (Getty Images)

The Champion Hurdle is the most coveted and fiercely contested hurdle race in National Hunt racing. The race is third run on the first day of the Cheltenham Festival, and will be run at 3:15pm during the 2008 Cheltenham Festival.

The Champion Hurdle is an old race with a rich Cheltenham Festival heritage stretching back to 1927 when Blaris won the first ever race, ridden by George Duller. The race is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race and is run on the old racecourse at Prestbury Park.

Entry to the Champion Hurdle is restricted to four-year-old and above horses that are required to jump eight hurdles during the two mile, 11 yard race. With hurdle obstacles slightly less severe than steeplechase fences at 3½ feet or more, the Champion Hurdle tends to be fast-paced and provides an excellent spectacle to the massive crowds at the Cheltenham Festival.

Champion Hurdle Winners

A number of fine racehorses have made their mark on National Hunt racing in the Champion Hurdle, Cheltenham Festival race. The most successful racehorse in the history of the event is Istabraq who won the race on three occasions, and also lays claim to the fastest-ever time in the race at 3 minutes, 48 seconds.

A Champion Hurdle win is also a significant achievement for any top National Hunt jockey and Tim Molony is the most successful jockey in the history of the event with four Champion Hurdle wins in the 1950s.

Other notable Champion Hurdle winners include Charlie Swan who rode Istabraq to his three consecutive wins in the event.

The trainer credited with the most Champion Hurdle winners is Peter Easterby who racked up five wins over three decades. The Champion Hurdle is one of the Cheltenham Festival races that has been dominated by the Irish horse racing fraternity for much of its history, with wins by the likes of Richard Johnson the exception rather than the norm.

Champion Hurdle Betting

The Champion Hurdle, Cheltenham Festival race, sees the best of National Hunt hurdlers compete for hurdle racing’s biggest prize. The prestige of the event translates into a big Champion Hurdle betting market, and although odds are not the highest in the event, picking a winner is simplified if you take time out to study the form books.

For live horse race betting we use William Hill, one of the world's largest betting companies.