Planning for the Cheltenham Festival starts 13 months in advance and there is a whole team behind the scenes responsible for making sure everything is in place for the four-day spectacular.
Telegraph Sport spoke to the unsung heroes who work tirelessly in the lead-up to make sure the Festival runs like clockwork.
Chef – Warren O’Connor, 56
“We’re responsible for all the food served on course – everything from a burger eaten on the go to the three Michelin-star chef Clare Smyth’s restaurant Core On Course.
“We start drawing up the menus in October and write up the recipes before tastings in December. Once the dishes are approved we plan how we’re going to produce the food.
“By the time Festival week comes around, there are 310 chefs on site in 64 kitchens. Our head chef at the course, Lawrence Jeffries, our stock man who looks after deliveries and I build spreadsheets of food we need to order. We have someone else looking after the allergens, putting all the information on to QR codes on the 200-odd different menus we do at various restaurants over the four days.
“As well as the restaurants there are so many other areas we cater for – hospitality, retail, the jockeys, the owners and trainers. Lawrence and I are on our feet walking the site all day – we’ll do about 26,000 steps each day, checking on the teams and the kitchens.
“The best thing about my job is variety – today I’ve been looking at stock and doing a tasting and tomorrow I could be on a forklift. We have a great team and the sense of achievement is massive when you’ve fed thousands of people and they go home happy. Last year our teams served 48,000 meals over four days and we had 11 complaints – that’s incredible.”
Airfield director – Nick Cox, 43
“This will be my ninth Festival. Planning starts three days after we’ve left the previous year – enough time to go home, have a sleep and check I haven’t been divorced!
“During the Festival, staff briefings begin at 9am and airspace opens at 10.30am. We then run through to 7.45pm and I’ll see how many steps I can get in between the terminal and the control tower, which is up on the hill.
“We are looking out for drones and potential threats to the airspace which we control for three miles out in radius and 3,000ft up.
“When we open, particularly on Thursday and Friday, there might be 30 or 40 aircraft queuing up to land and we’ll easily handle 150 aircraft in a day. It can be dark and raining at that time of year, which can be challenging for flying.
“The most important thing for us is safety of the airspace with so many aircraft operating in close proximity – on movement rates we are just about the busiest airspace in Britain during the four days.
“After the last race is run and the road to the heliport is open, we have to get all the single-engine aircraft out as soon as we can as they legally can’t fly in the dark. The VIPs just want to go as well. So, for that hour and a half it’s peak time.
“It’s a frantic week but I love it. For us success is measured by the CAA [Civil Aviation Authority] safety report at the end of the week and whether the team have handled everything that has come their way, the customers have big smiles on their faces and the pilots are saying thank you.”
Head of operations – Gemma Steve, 42
“It’s down to us to make sure everything functions properly, looks great and everyone has an enjoyable and safe experience. There’s a maintenance team, an operations team and a health and safety team, then a large race-day and on-event workforce – including contractors, security, cleaning and traffic management teams.
“We look after a huge range of areas – permanent buildings, temporary structures, safety and security, traffic management, planning and building of marquees, drainage, surfacing and car parks.
“Planning for the Festival starts 13 months in advance, so although we’re about to stage this year’s, we’re already weeks into planning for 2026. During the week you can be dealing with drain blockages one minute and security the next. Car parks were an issue last year with all the rain so we’ve laid more trackway than any other event in Europe – 18,000 aluminium panels.
“It’s an intense four days but it’s worth it for the buzz of working at the greatest event in the world. I love walking around the site when the gates open and see people flowing in – I take great pride in seeing people enjoying themselves!
Owners and trainers liaison – Jennifer Doris, 34
“The Festival is the meeting everyone wants to be at and we’ll have around 1,000 owners and trainers on site each day.
“For sole owners and partnerships, we offer six tickets, badges and lunches as standard, all with access to the parade ring, which goes up to eight for syndicates and racing clubs. But we also offer the chance to swap all or some of their lunches for up to 20 admission tickets with access to owners and trainers facilities.
“We tailor it to suit each owner rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach. We also look after the winning connections after each race. Once your horse has won, you receive your trophy and then head with us for a glass of champagne and to watch a replay. By that time we’ll have boxed up your trophy, had a photograph of your horse printed and framed and you’re given a video of the race to take away.
“Regardless of whether an owner has 10 horses running or it’s the only horse they own, we aim to give everyone an amazing week so they want to come back next year and do it again. Owners put so much into the sport so it’s a thrill to make their days special.”
Stable manager – John Morrison, 74
“The Irish start to arrive on the Saturday, we get them sorted and then from the Sunday they’ll be out on the gallops. They get back, hosed off and then we get them bedded for the evening.
“The horses that win the big five races [Champion Hurdle, Queen Mother Champion Chase, Ryanair Chase, Stayers’ Hurdle and Gold Cup] all have a plaque on their box door that goes up by the time they get back to the stables after their race. Paisley Park’s owner Andrew Gemmell is blind so when he won the Stayers’ Hurdle we got a plaque made up in braille for him.
“I’ll try to put trainers in the same place each year. It’s easier for us and them. Galopin Des Champs has won the Gold Cup for the last two years, so we’ll make sure he goes in the same box he’s had before. We try to do little things like that when we can.
“Henrietta Knight was back here recently with a runner and we made sure she had Best Mate’s box for the day. I just want people to come here and feel comfortable. I love being around these people. I had one trainer last year who went back to Ireland and rang me two days later to apologise because he’d forgotten to say goodbye.
“I’ve been here 19 years, the last 16 as stable manager. I was an engineer for 30-odd years before that but I’d had enough. My job’s so enjoyable I don’t really consider it work. I’ve got the best job on the course and I wish I’d found it 30 years ago.”
Groundsman – Nathan Williams, 34
“Day to day my work involves assisting Alastair King [head groundsman] in any way he needs me. That could be looking after the fence, hurdle and rails teams. We could be starting at 5.30am and finishing at 11.30pm. It all depends on factors like whether we are watering or have rails or hurdles to move.
“Our biggest challenge is making sure everything is ready for racing the following day before you leave. Multiple-day events are the hardest to manage, with track repairs in the mornings and evenings and rail adjustments to make. Wednesday night into Thursday is our busiest time as we move from the Old Course to the New Course. The weather is also a huge challenge. In the build-up, we are talking about the forecast day in, day out.
“Some people think we just mow grass but when they see all that we do and how much planning goes into it they are surprised. I guess we are unsung heroes but we know what we do and are proud of it. The highlight is seeing the very best horses on course across the four days and the buzz you get from the crowd.”
Handyman (who also rode Cogent to glory in the 1993 Hennessy Gold Cup) – Dan Fortt, 51
“We’re a team of five in charge of the upkeep of the buildings with responsibility for plumbing, painting, getting events on, making sure it’s a safe site.
“First thing in the morning we’ll walk through each building and do anything from replacing a lightbulb to unblocking a loo or replacing a broken door. We also do signage and work with the cleaning team to turn around the building between race days.
“The magic fairies come in during the night and the next morning a place which was completely trashed will look good as new. We’ll be there from 6am to 7pm or later and we’ll do a lot of steps.
“During the day if anything goes wrong we’re on the end of a radio. We could even be involved in crowd control but between us we have skills in plumbing, decorating and carpentry. There’s not much we can’t turn our hand to.
“Good weather’s a bonus even though we’re indoors a lot. It’s pretty physically taxing. We’ll go home knackered on Friday night – then we’re back in first thing on Saturday to start stripping it out.”
Assistant general manager – Andre Klein, 53
“My responsibility is to make sure the local community gets the most out of the Festival and all it brings. I always say it’s Cheltenham’s Gold Cup, not the racecourse’s.
“There was a time when racegoers walking into town would nip into people’s gardens for a pee and rubbish was a problem. This job was created to combat that so I try to make sure the local residents are not impacted in a negative way.
“We created a new initiative ‘Love Our Turf’ which has helped enormously. I hold the community phone line so if they ring they come straight through to me and if anything happens I can allocate resources. We’re also there to help racegoers with directions to the nearest pub or train station; 25,000 people came to last year’s Gold Cup by train.
“I’ll be out on the streets every evening with our team of stewards in hi-viz jackets and liaise with the council over walking routes.
“I also take the actual Gold Cup trophy on tour in the lead up to the meeting and explain the history of it to schools, care homes, local events. On Festival Monday a group of five local schools visit the course for a behind-the-scenes tour of everything from the weighing room to the Royal Box and we’ll have someone like Rachael Blackmore giving them lessons on an Equicizer [mechanical horse].”
Clerk of the course – Jon Pullin, 54
“I’m in charge of the race programme, all things track and participant [owners, trainers, jockeys, racing staff]. We’ve made a few changes to the programme to try and keep the race as competitive as possible. The proof of the pudding will be in the eating but the early indications with the entries are positive.
“The weather during the winter always presents a challenge to getting the course in good shape. We’re focused on the Festival from October and we always have an eye on March so at the other meetings this winter we’ve been trying to save ground for this week. We’d be using fence extensions and getting them to run wider so we have fresh ground. The course preparation steps up a gear after trials day [end of January].
“It’s been pretty wet at times this winter. We had 100mm of rain in January, 48mm in February when we had hardly any sun. For grass recovery the challenge is for the New Course which we use in December and January. To help that we put a fleece on parts of the straight to increase soil temperature and we’ve managed to get a mower on it.
“We’re constantly trying to improve the ownership experience and this year owners with runners on the day will have a new dining area where they can eat for free.”
The vet – Sally Taylor, 47
“There’s a team of BHA [British Horseracing Authority] vets separate to the racecourse vets and we’re a final check to make sure a horse has travelled safely and is in a suitable condition to run. Whilst trainers do everything in their power to get their runners to the races in tip-top condition, things can change; a horse can pull a shoe off in the lorry and tread on a nail or an abscess in a foot can come on quickly.
“All horses will have had their previous six months medical records for long-acting medications submitted and every runner will have a pre-race examination when we see it trot up in hand, palpate [feel] its legs for any heat, pain or swelling and listen to its heart. From roughly 17,000 horses we’ve examined, on average one in 167 runners fails and is not permitted to run.
“We also observe them leaving the stables, in the paddock, going to the start and at the start. A vet follows them during the race and we’ll watch them at the pull up – that is why we ask them to circle – and during unsaddling and when they come back to the stables.
“If there are any problems a horse can be seen and attended by a racecourse vet. There’s a permanent treatment room in the stable equipped with X-ray and ultrasound machines. If a horse needs further evaluation or treatment it is taken by horse ambulance to an off-site equine hospital.”
Big screen content – Dermot Cumiskey, 55
“I sit in a lorry in the car park for the whole Festival when I’m employed by the Jockey Club to produce the pictures and audio of the big screens, tailoring output for racegoers with coverage of the paddock to the runners getting to the post to the actual race when we add the order of the first four for anyone who cannot hear the audio.
“We cover the build-up, have some history packages to run which on Champion Hurdle day starts with Night Nurse and ends with State Man, last year’s winner so there’s a bit of nostalgia.
“The paddock screen is the largest at any sporting venue in Britain. It replaced the old numbers board and has a great impact, so much so that a lot of trainers now choose to watch the race in the paddock and it gives you a great view from the back of the grandstands. If any of the screens go wrong we have a great team of technicians on site – it’s a well-oiled machine.
“We use a mix of ITV and RaceTech coverage. We have to be aware we’re catering for an audience who may be 10 yards or 50 yards away from the screen so we try to keep as much of the action in the shot. The fun part is when there is a close finish and hearing the crowd reaction when we run a slo-mo of the finish before the judge has called the result. It’s the one track where the crowd know all about racing, they’re all racing fans and you feel that.”
Five changes to help improve meeting
By Marcus Armytage
The in-field gallops: There will be several hundred Irish runners stabled during the week, some of them having arrived as early as Saturday. They need somewhere to exercise in the mornings before racing and between 7am and 9.30am there will be a steady stream of Irish-trained runners taking a canter round a circular all-weather surface opposite the grandstands. For some time, given that the Irish have been providing much of the sport and most of the winners, the all-weather surface has been inadequate, and the track to it a stony hazard. This year it has been completely relaid with a new surface and now the facility is commensurate with the standard of horses using it.
The car parks: Last year they were a scene of devastation early in the week as cars became bogged in mud after heavy rain, many requiring the assistance of a tractor to get out and a car wash to get clean. Social media was ablaze with negative stories of racegoers’ departure from the course. This year 18,000 aluminium panels covering 129,000 square metres have been laid, the equivalent of 17 football pitches and the most laid at any European event. Sod’s law says it will be a dry week.
Wine or Guinness? Rich Ricci, who has star mare Lossiemouth running, has become a popular part of the furniture since bursting on the scene when he boldly named a horse Fatcatinthehat. His three-piece tweed suits topped off with a trilby tend to speak louder than words. This year, if you are not supping one of the 265,000 pints of Guinness – enough to fill three Olympic swimming pools – you could be drinking his wife Susannah’s wine as, for the first time, the Jockey Club will be serving Yotes Court across the site. The Riccis bought the neighbouring farm in Kent in 2014, planted 100,000 vines and Yotes Court is the result.
RIP the amateur jockey: The race programme has had some substantial tweaks since last year to make it even more competitive. The biggest change is to the meeting’s oldest race, the National Hunt Chase, once one of the three races dedicated to amateur riders, now a long-distance novice handicap open to professionals.
The £500k bonus: On April 4, the jockey with most televised winners on ITV through the jump season will win a life-changing £500,000 – the equivalent of a jockey’s percentage of winning 10 consecutive Grand Nationals as the victor of the inaugural David Power Jockeys’ Cup. There are 10, 8, 6 and 4 points for finishing first, second, third and fourth, with six races televised daily. The scores on the doors going into the meeting are Harry Skelton on 312 points, Harry Cobden on 270, Sam Twiston-Davies on 230 and Nico de Boinville on 214.
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