Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase

The Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase is run over 2 miles and 110 yards at Cheltenham, where it is currently scheduled as the final race of the Cheltenham Festival. The contest has the distinction of being the oldest, as well as the last, race run at the Festival, where it has been a fixture since 1913.

The eponymous Johnny Henderson was well known as an amateur jockey, owner and, of course, as the father of the leading National Hunt trainer Nicky Henderson. His principal contribution, however, was the creation of Racecourse Holdings Trust, which bought Cheltenham racecourse for £240,000 in 1963, thus saving it from the property developers.

In the list of current trainers, Paul Nicholls has the most successful record in the Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase, having saddled St Pirran (2004), Andreas (2007), Solar Impulse (2016) for a total of three wins. In the past, the late Fulke Walwyn also saddled three winners – Loyal King (1946), Rose And Crown (1953) and Richard Of Bordeaux (1964).