Windsor Racecourse ‘Jumping’ For Joy With The Return Of National Hunt Racing In 2024-25

jump racing
jump racing

Windsor racecourse, which has only staged flat racing since 1998, will welcome back the jumpers for the 2024-25 season after the venue’s owners Arena Racing Company announced it will have National Hunt action again.

Windsor Racecourse ‘Jumping’ For Joy With The Return Of National Hunt Action

The royal track of Windsor had staged a few Ascot fixtures back in 2005 and 2006, when the Berkshire track was being improved – but, it was back in 1998 that the popular figure-of-eight course last staged a jumps meeting.

However, that will all change in the 2024-25 season as Arena Racing Company and managing direct Mark Spincer revealed on Monday that Royal Windsor will be back in the jumping game.

Windsor has become famous in recent years for staging their regular Monday night flat card, that is a hit with the early week horse racing fans, but lovers of the hedgehoppers can now also get excited with a National Hunt fixture pencilled in for December 15th 2024.

Windsor To Be Reconfigured As a Left-Handed Circuit

It’s also rumoured that the Windsor track will be modified as a continous left-handed circuit and widened in certain places to cope with more runners.


RELATED: 2023 Glorious Goodwood Quiz | Test Your Goodwood Horse Racing Knowledge


ARC’s Managing Director Mark Spincer told Racing TV

“Whilst the racecourse hasn’t hosted regularly scheduled jumps fixtures since 1998, we believe that the plans that we have put together with the British Horseracing Authority will mean that the small number of fixtures that we would like to host will sit well alongside the long established, popular summer Flat programme.

“A significant amount of work has gone into considering the optimal layout for jump racing at Royal Windsor, which will see the course configured differently to how it was previously, but we believe that it is an excellent proposal to offer jump racing fans the chance to come back to Royal Windsor, whilst not impacting on the Flat programme, which is an important consideration.

“The proximity to the River Thames gives the track excellent drainage, and our records show that the racecourse very rarely ran jumps fixtures on heavy ground, with the majority of abandonments coming due to frost.

“Happily, turf management techniques have developed significantly since that time, so we are confident of providing excellent jumping ground for the fixtures that we would like to host in 2024 and 2025 and beyond.”

Windor Racecourse Last Staged a Jumps Card in 1998

 

Related Horse Racing Content:

Latest news

View all
Arrow to top