The County
Handicap Hurdle is a Grade 3 contest, run over 2 miles 1 furlong
on the New Course at Cheltenham, where it is currently scheduled as
the second race on the final day of the Cheltenham Festival in March.
Historically, the County Hurdle was the last race at the Festival
and, granted its highly competitive nature, was a popular “getting
out stakes”. The race was moved to its new position in the Festival
program in 2009 and, in 2015, the safety limit was reduced to 26 from
28 runners, but it is still arguably the most competitive contest of
the week.
The County Hurdle was run for the first
time in 1920 but, in1995, was named after the late Michael
Vincent O’Brien, a legendary Irish trainer whose 23 successes at
the Cheltenham Festival included four Cheltenham Gold Cups and three
Champion Hurdles. It's currently known as The William Hill County Handicap Hurdle. Perhaps understandably, since World War II no horse
has won the County Hurdle more than once, but Willie Mullins is leading trainer with seven wins and leading jockey is shared by Ruby Walsh and Paul Townend with four wins a piece,
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