The Champion Hurdle is a National Hunt race run at Cheltenham racecourse, located at Cheltenham, England. The race was inaugurated in 1927, with horses aged four years and above taking part in it. It covers a total distance of 3,298 meters, and horses jump over a total of 8 hurdles during the race. Currently, the race is known as the Unibet Champion Hurdle, being sponsored by the Unibet, a major gambling operator. Champion Hurdle is scheduled
for March every year, and marks the beginning of Cheltenham Festival.
The race was first recorded in 1927, with its first winner Blaris being awarded 365 Euros. Brown Jack became its second winner the following year. In 1931, the race was cancelled due to unfavorable weather. It then resumed in 1932, with only 3 horses racing against each other. Since then, the race happened each year, till later in 1943 when it was cut short by the outbreak of the Second World War. Hatton’s Grace, Sir Ken and National Spirit were the only racehorse winners till later in 1955. Even after being postponed two times due to bad weather, the Champions Hurdle attracted a total of 30,000 people in 1955, making it the most attended race of the year. Dawn Run won the race in 1984, making it the second mare to emerge the winner. In 1987, See You Then became the winner for
the third time since 1985. Nicky Henderson remains the leading trainer in the race, with a total of six victories.
This year, the Champion Hurdle took place on Tuesday, the 13th of March as from 3:30pm. The race was won by Buveur D ’Air. Melon and Mick Jazz took the second and third positions respectively. In the beginning, the prize money for the race amounted to a total of 227,800 Euros. This changed over the years, and today the winning jockey walks away with 400,000 Euros.