Who invented the Weight-For-Age scale?

Who invented the Weight-For-Age scale? As the name suggests, the Weight-For-Age (WFA) scale is a sliding scale of weight allowances that younger horses receive from older, mature horses over different distances at various stages throughout the season. As the season progresses, younger horses, especially three-year-olds, mature physically and are better able to compete with their elders, so the weight allowance decreases every two weeks until the end of the year.

The WFA scale has been revised several times in its history, but is essentially the same as it has always been. It was invented, or at least formalised, by Admiral Henry John Rous, who served in the Royal Navy in the Napoleonic War in the early nineteenth century, but became senior steward of the Jockey Club in 1838. It was in that capacity that he published ‘The Laws and Practices of Horse Racing’ in 1850 and devised the WFA scale in 1851. Rous was was appointed official Jockey Club handicapper in 1855, earning the derogatory title of ‘Dictator of the Turf’. He is, however, commemorated by the Listed Rous Stakes, which is run over five furlongs at Ascot each October.

Is the Cheltenham Gold Cup actually made of gold?

The simple answer is yes, it is. The original Cheltenham Gold Cup, created by Blanckensee & Sons of Birmingham for the inaugural running of the race in 1924, was returned to Cheltenham Racecourse in 2018. Originally presented to Major Humphrey Wyndham, owner of the first winner, Red Splash, the trophy dropped out of sight for decades, but had reportedly been in private ownership, in a bank vault, since the Seventies.

Ian Renton, Regional Director of the Jockey Club, which owns Cheltenham Racecourse, welcomed the return of the trophy, saying, ‘To bring the first ever Cheltenham Gold Cup trophy back to its rightful home and to use as the perpetual trophy really demonstrates the rich history and heritage of the race.’

The original Cheltenham Gold Cup was mounted on a plinth bearing the names of all the previous winners of the race and has been presented, as a perennial trophy, to the winning owner since 2019. Indeed, that was the first time the Cheltenham Gold Cup had changed since 1972. The Cheltenham Gold Cup, itself, consists of 23 ounces, or 644 grams, of nine carat gold – worth nearly £30,000 at current prices – and is coated with 18 carat gold to create a rich, lustrous sheen.

Which is the most successful horse in the history of the Queen Mother Champion Chase?

In the history of the Queen Mother Champion Chase, which was established, as the National Hunt Two-Mile Champion Chase, in 1959, several horses have two victories to their names. Since the turn of the twenty-first century, Moscow Flyer, Sprinter Sacre and, most recently, Altior, have won the race twice.

However, for the most successful horse in the history of the Queen Mother Champion Chase we need to look a little further back when, for a bright, but brief, period, National Hunt racing was dominated by Michael ‘The Mad Genius’ Dickinson. Dickinson is best remembered for saddling the first five finishers in the 1983 Cheltenham Gold Cup, but also saddled Badsworth Boy to the first two of his three wins in the Queen Mother Champion Chase, in 1983 and 1984.

Dickinson, who described Badsworth Boy as ‘the best I trained over jumps’, said, ‘I would urge anyone to watch his first Champion Chase [which he won by a distance] on YouTube because it was the most devastating performance you’re ever likely to see.

In the summer of 1984, Dickinson was recruited by Robert Sangster to train his Flat horses The family licence passed to his mother, Monica, who saddled Badsworth Boy to a record third win in the Queen Mother Champion Chase in 1985.

How old is John Gosden?

Five-time champion trainer John Gosden was born in Hove, Sussex on March 30, 1951 so, at the time of writing, he has recently turned 70 years of age. Gosden has been based at Clarehaven Stables on Bury Road, Newmarket since returning to the ‘Home of Horse Racing’ from his previous base in Manton, Wiltshire in 2006.

Gosden is on the record as ‘not looking to retire any time soon’ but, since March, 2021, has held a joint training licence with his son, Thady. Thady Gosden, 25, had been assistant trainer to his father for five years and regularly represented the yard at racecourses around the world. According to Gosden Snr., he is ‘more than ready to take over’ and, with Gosden Jnr. supervising the training of Mishriff, winner of the Saudi Cup at Riyadh and the Sheema Classic at Meydan in recent months, few would care to argue.

The father-son partnership, described by John Gosden as a ‘fair compromise’, was successful with its very first runner, Regent, at Lingfield on March 26, 2021. Thady Gosden was not present to witness the landmark victory, though, because he was already on his way to the Dubai World Cup Meeting.

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