Richard
Lee To Enter Welsh National Winner Mountainous
Trainers and owners have until noon on Tuesday, January 28,
2014 to enter horses for the Crabbie's Grand National, which is worth £1
million for the first time thanks to the new sponsor.
This is
by far the highest amount of prize money offered for a jump race outside of
Japan and the maximum 40 runners are likely to line up again for the
world-famous chase which is staged on the third and final day of the Crabbie's
Grand National Festival, Saturday, April 5, at Aintree.
Due off
at 4.15pm that day, the Crabbie's Grand National is run over 30 fences and four
miles, three and a half furlongs.
Last
year's Grand National was witnessed by a sell-out crowd of 70,000 at Aintree,
watched live on television in Britain by nearly nine million Channel 4 viewers
and seen worldwide by over 600 million people.
Andrew
Tulloch, Regional Head of Racing Jockey Club Racecourses NW &
Aintree's Clerk of the Course, commented: "The 167th running of the
world's greatest chase, the Crabbie's Grand National, on April 5 has £1 million
in prize money and it is very exciting to have reached this landmark figure.
"It
means the winning horse will receive £561,300 which is more than the total
prize money for the race in 2002, and there are again prizes down to the 10th
horse to finish.
"We
are looking forward to receiving tremendous entries on Tuesday for the 2014
Crabbie's Grand National."
Modifications
to the Grand National course have been made in recent years, which culminated
last year with plastic frames being introduced into most of the famous fences
and the start being moved forward by 90 yards.
Tulloch
added: "We have made quite a few changes over the last six years and we
are very happy with the new frames and how the fences have ridden.
"We
were delighted with how last year's Grand National went. Now is a time for
stability and no further changes to the course are planned but, as always,
welfare is uppermost in our minds and we do not stand still.
"The
2013 Grand National was a great story for British racing and for all parties
involved - trainers, owners, jockeys, the welfare organisations with whom we
consulted, and many others within equestrian disciplines that we
involved."
The
entries for the 2014 Crabbie's Grand National will be released at noon on
Wednesday, January 29, with the weights unveiled on Tuesday, February 11.
Herefordshire
trainer Richard Lee is planning to enter Welsh National hero Mountainous.
The
improving nine-year-old relished the testing conditions in the Chepstow
showpiece on December 28 and battled on gamely to score by a head from Hawkes
Point.
Connections
will be hoping he can follow in the hoof prints of Rag Trade (1976) and
Corbiere (1983), who completed the Welsh National and Grand National double in
the same season.
Lee
reported: "Mountainous has come out of the Welsh National absolutely
fine and will be given an entry in the Crabbie's Grand National on Tuesday.
"I
was delighted with him at Chepstow and he has obviously gone up (in the
handicap) as a result, but that was to be expected.
"We hope he will get a nice weight now, but we will have to see what else is entered.
"Before
Aintree, he will either go to Ffos Las for the West Wales National (February 1)
or to Haydock for the Grand National Trial (February 15).
"He
wouldn't want the ground too quick at Aintree. He has got form on good to soft,
but the softer the better really."
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