Just when it looked as if the Cheltenham Festival would survive the threat posed by outbreaks of foot and mouth disease, the highlight of the National Hunt racing season was thrown back into doubt this evening with news of a suspected case of the disease three miles from Lambourn, Berkshire.
The Lambourn area - although some 50 miles from Cheltenham - is the main National Hunt training centre in the country and were the outbreak to be confirmed, it would almost certainly spell the end for the Festival, with the participation at the meeting of Irish horses ruled out and the French in doubt. "The Ministry of Agriculture has confirmed that there is a suspected case in the Lambourn area," said Peter Walwyn, chairman of the Lambourn Trainers' Association. "It has not been confirmed but it is obviously a big worry."
And Simon Claisse, clerk of the course at Cheltenham, this evening reasserted the position of officials should the case be officially confirmed. "We've said from the outset that if another major training centre was hit by the disease, then that would be a major blow to the chances of the meeting going ahead," he said.
