40,000 Irish race to Aintree festival
Numbers of Irish visitors to the Liverpool racing festival have more than doubled in a mere two years to almost 40,000, according to statistics.More than a quarter of the 150,000 racegoers at last year’s John Smith Grand National meeting were from the Republic or Northern Ireland — a total of 39,750 or 26.5% compared with 18,000 in 2005. The surge in support is not surprising considering the Irish links with the celebrated race, which has a worldwide television audience of 600 million.
Becher’s Brook, the most feared fence on the course, is named after Captain Martin Becher of Ballygiblin, Castlemagner, Co Cork, who helped to establish the Dashing Duhallows hunting pack. He was unseated from his mount, Conrad, fell into the ditch and was killed when leading in the first running of the 1839 race.
Irish-bred horses, owners, trainers and jockeys have won the race on numerous occasions.
Trainer Vincent O’Brien has the remarkable record of training three successive winners in Early Mist (1953), Royal Tan (1954) and Quare Times (1955).
While the Cheltenham festival in March continues to have a magnetic appeal for Irish punters, the Aintree Grand National is attracting growing interest, with thousands again expected to cross the Irish Sea for the meeting on April 3, 4 and 5.
Aintree managing director Julian Thick said: “Our Irish visitors play such a massive part in the magical atmosphere at Aintree for the John Smith’s Grand National and we’re looking forward to welcoming more than ever this year.
“So many people have grown up watching the Grand National on television, but only those who attend it can really experience the excitement of one of the most spectacular sporting events in the world,” he said.
