Horse Racing

The Cheltenham Festival is here and Wales' leading jockeys and trainers will descend on the Cotswolds bidding for glory at jump racing's biggest four days.

Leading Welsh trainer Sam Thomas was proud of his two horses’ efforts at the Coral Welsh Grand National even though Val Dancer emerged from the murk to seize victory. Val Dancer tenaciously held off Thomas’ dual challenge of Jubilee Express and Iwilldoit at Chepstow to win a race that was only visible at certain stages due to thick fog.

Welsh trainer Sam Thomas is hopeful Jubilee Express can prove “a special horse” by winning the Coral Welsh Grand National for him – just as Iwilldoit did three years ago. Thomas sends both horses to the start line at Chepstow on Friday with Jubilee Express most fancied to provide a home winner in Wales’ leading race in the calendar, which carries £150,000 of prize money.

The final meeting of the calendar year at Ffos Las Racecourse takes place on Wednesday with a seven-race offering to celebrate the Christmas Jumper Raceday. The action gets underway at 12.22pm as nine runners tackle the class four handicap hurdle before the action comes to a close at 3.50pm with the bumper – a Flat race ran over Jumps rules for runners making their way in the early stages of their career.

Sean Bowen secured his 100th win of the season on board Dominic’s Fault at Lingfield on Monday – and is confident he can further strengthen his position at the top of the Jump Jockeys’ Championship. The Championship runs from 4th May 2024 to 26th April 2025 and is based on the amount of winners jockeys ride over the course of the season.

Chepstow Racecourse hosts its latest Jumps card on Friday afternoon with a seven-race offering at the track as the cold snap sweeps across Britain. Racing will get underway at 12.30pm with a two mile and three furlong maiden hurdle in class four before the last race of the day heads off at 3.59pm as a field of 14 take on the Bumper – a Flat race run over Jumps rules.

Geoff Lewis – the only Welsh jockey ever to ride a winner of the Derby – has picked up another trophy to add to his collection. The 88-year-old – winner of the 1971 Derby on Mill Reef – was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Welsh Horse Racing Awards in Cardiff on Thursday night.

Chepstow Racecourse hosts its annual Military Raceday at the track on Wednesday as part of an action-packed eight-race Jumps card. Racing gets underway at 12.20pm with a conditional jockeys’ handicap chase before the card comes to a close at 4.05pm as ten runners take on the class five bumper contest.

Welsh jump jockey Alan Johns has won a top award after becoming the new face and voice of horse racing. Johns, who rides for the Tim Vaughan stable in the Vale of Glamorgan, has won the Jockeys Education and Training Scheme (JETS) Progress Award in recognition of his burgeoning media career.

Wales’ leading jump jockeys will put their pride on the line this weekend as they help start the Welsh jump season with a charity ride that already appears an institution. The likes of Sean and James Bowen, Connor Brace, Ben Jones, Jack Tudor and Alan Johns will feature in the Welsh Jump Jockeys Derby – the first race of the Unibet Jump Season Opener at Chepstow on Friday October 11.

Welsh athletes hope the Prime Minister will heed their emphatic call to ensure disabled children have equal access to sport. As the triumphant Great Britain team returned home from Paris with 124 medals – 49 gold, 44 silver and 31 bronze, including 22 medals for Welsh athletes – ParalympicsGB posted an open letter to Sir Keir Starmer, urging him to “act now” and establish a “clear plan from across Government with concrete steps for change”.

Racing continues at Chepstow this week with a competitive seven-race card on offer for punters heading to the track on Tuesday afternoon. The meeting gets underway at 2pm with a class four apprentice handicap before rounding off at 5.30pm as six runners take on the seven furlong handicap to bring the card to a close.

The Flat racing continues at Ffos Las on Thursday with day one of the Summer Flat Festival at Ffos Las. Racing on the opening day of action gets underway at 2.25pm with a maiden stakes in class five before coming to a close at 5pm with a two-mile handicap in class six.

The action continues at Chepstow Racecourse this week with a competitive six-race card on the Flat on Thursday afternoon at the track. Racing gets underway at 2.10 with a seven-runner handicap for apprentice jockeys in class six before the meeting comes to a close with an eight-runner handicap in class six at 5.05 to bring the curtain down on the card.

The 2024 edition of the Racing League arrives in Chepstow on Thursday with a high-quality seven-race card on offer for punters heading to the track. The Racing League sees seven teams representing different parts of the country taking each other on across 42 races at six meetings with over £2m in prize money on offer, with Chepstow’s card marking the third fixture of the season and the midway point of the competition – with all kids aged under 17 able to get in for free when accompanied with a paying adult to Chepstow on Thursday.

The Flat season continues apace at Ffos Las this week with a six-race card on offer on Tuesday evening. Racing gets underway at 6.05pm with an 11-runner handicap in class six before rounding off at 8.40pm with another class six handicap, this time over the one mile and six furlong distance.

The Flat racing season continues at Ffos Las on Wednesday, with six races on the card for the midweek evening meeting. The racing gets underway at 6:30pm, with the racing running all the way until 9pm in the evening sunshine. The going is likely to be good to firm, with the ground beginning to dry up as the weather improves following what has been a wet July so far.

Chepstow hosts its latest meeting on Friday evening – Ladies with a competitive seven-race offering for punters heading to the track. Racing gets underway at 5.15 with a class four handicap before rounding off at 8.45 as nine runners take on the class six handicap to bring proceedings to a close.

Missed out on a ticket to the Glastonbury Festival this year? Fear not, as you can head to Glast-On-Dee instead on Friday to mix live music with a seven-race Jumps card at the track. That’s right. Bangor-On-Dee Racecourse hosts its latest card on Friday afternoon and evening, with live music before and after the card off the track.

Hot on the heels of Ffos Las’s 15th birthday celebration on Sunday, the Welsh track hosts a midweek six-race evening card to keep the action rolling in. Racing gets underway in the Burry Port RNLI 200 Year Celebration Racenight at 6.20pm with the 1m2f handicap in class six before rounding off at 8.50 as seven runners take on the class five handicap.