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CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL 2023 - FOUR MEMORABLE DAYS FOR OUR CLIENTS
Account Executive Kitty Waddell looks back on the Cheltenham Festival and on SITA’s activity to promote clients over the four days of racing.
CHELTENHAM
FESTIVAL 2023
CHELTENHAM FESITVAL REVIEW
Although the Cheltenham Festival never fails to firmly cement a host of memories into the minds of spectators and punters, the 2023 renewal will surely go down in history as a particularly special one. Racing, as a sport, has an extraordinary ability to create stories and real-life fairy-tale endings, almost as though they were scripted.
Day One
Each of the four days offered its fair share of jaw-dropping and emotive moments and ahead of each day SITA produced print and online columns for City AM, previewing the best of the action as well as promoting the interests of other clients like William Hill, with mentions of odds and markets.
Day one may have been the most memorable, which saw Honeysuckle finish her racing career with a fourth win at the Festival. Henry de Bromhead’s mare received the loudest reception of her career as she returned to the winners’ enclosure having gamely fended off the challenge of runner-up Love Envoi.
Discussion of the first day of this year’s Cheltenham Festival cannot go without mentioning the mighty Constitution Hill, who proved himself to be the future star of Jump racing by making light work of beating Champion Hurdle rival State Man – widely regarded to be the gelding’s highest-class opponent to date. We helped William Hill make a statement of their own before the tapes even lifted, as they renamed seven of their shops ‘Constitution Hill’, and their faith in Nicky Henderson’s six-year-old was certainly affirmed.
If anyone was going to present the champ with a challenge, it would have been State Man, but even he failed to get close, as Constitution Hill got his trademark jetpack on. He was quite something to behold and exceeded the hype.
Day Two
Wednesday’s crowning moment for SITA was ThoroughBid-graduate Maskada’s win in the Grand Annual at lengthy odds of 22/1. The mare, trained by Henry de Bromhead having been sold in ThoroughBid’s March Sale for £80,000 in 2022, defied expectations by beating the favourite home by six-and-a-half lengths. This was the highest profile win by a ThoroughBid graduate since the company’s inception in 2021, so it was a terrific achievement for all involved and was the icing on the cake of a great day’s racing.
We responded to this landmark accomplishment by promoting the result across all channels and in print, moving quickly to place a congratulatory advert in Gold Cup day’s edition of the Racing Post, thereby generating new interest in the company’s upcoming sale. Perhaps another Cheltenham winner will be sold in this year’s Spring Sale!
MASKADA 💥
— ThoroughBid (@thorough_bid) March 15, 2023
🤝 Sold for £80,000 in our 2022 March Sale
🐴 Trained by @HenrydeBromhead
🏇 Ridden by @DarraghOKeeffe8
🥇 WINNER of the Grand Annual Challenge! #CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/01zZVnJ1ka
🙌 Cheering MASKADA into the winners' enclosure!
— ThoroughBid (@thorough_bid) March 15, 2023
Bought for £80,000 at the @thorough_bid March Sale, the Masked Marvel mare lands the Grand Annual @CheltenhamRaces!
👏 @CoolmaraS @HenrydeBromhead @DarraghOKeeffe8 pic.twitter.com/dOJZTTP9lY
Day Three
Nobody watching the Stayers’ Hurdle on day three could have predicted that 33/1 shot Sire Du Berlais would emerge victorious… nobody, that is, except for William Hill ambassador, Leonna Mayor. Sire Du Berlais stayed on brilliantly to beat stable-mate Teahupoo by a nose – an unprecedented achievement for trainer, jockey, owner and tipster! Those who heeded Leonna’s advice must have been weighed down by their pockets after collecting.
Wonder why @LeonnaMayor is one of the best in the business? Here's why ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/yd0MGIC6Mo
— William Hill Racing (@WillHillRacing) March 16, 2023
The SITA racing team worked tirelessly on William Hill’s social accounts over the four days, spreading the selections of their top-tipping partners to punters, as well as previews and rewinds from past Festivals. The Inside Track proved to be a popular, entertaining and informative vlog-cast in the weeks leading up to the Cheltenham week and featured numerous famous faces discussing their love of the game.
Day Four
Galopin Des Champs’ easy triumph in the Gold Cup on the final day of the Festival was another spectacular moment and a joy to watch. It was a real pleasure for the SITA racing team to be at Cheltenham to watch such a fabulous horse show his best having been so well fancied by William Hill ambassadors Nick Luck and Barry Geraghty. Similarly, the result of the following Hunters’ Chase provided even more excitement for us when ThoroughBid-sold Its On The Line, bought for only £8,000, finished a close second to Premier Magic. Altogether a superb week for the online auction house and it was a delight to be involved in promoting their success over the four days.
Roll on next year!
Day One
Each of the four days offered its fair share of jaw-dropping and emotive moments and ahead of each day SITA produced print and online columns for City AM, previewing the best of the action as well as promoting the interests of other clients like William Hill, with mentions of odds and markets.
Day one may have been the most memorable, which saw Honeysuckle finish her racing career with a fourth win at the Festival. Henry de Bromhead’s mare received the loudest reception of her career as she returned to the winners’ enclosure having gamely fended off the challenge of runner-up Love Envoi.
Discussion of the first day of this year’s Cheltenham Festival cannot go without mentioning the mighty Constitution Hill, who proved himself to be the future star of Jump racing by making light work of beating Champion Hurdle rival State Man – widely regarded to be the gelding’s highest-class opponent to date. We helped William Hill make a statement of their own before the tapes even lifted, as they renamed seven of their shops ‘Constitution Hill’, and their faith in Nicky Henderson’s six-year-old was certainly affirmed.
If anyone was going to present the champ with a challenge, it would have been State Man, but even he failed to get close, as Constitution Hill got his trademark jetpack on. He was quite something to behold and exceeded the hype.
Day Three
Nobody watching the Stayers’ Hurdle on day three could have predicted that 33/1 shot Sire Du Berlais would emerge victorious… nobody, that is, except for William Hill ambassador, Leonna Mayor. Sire Du Berlais stayed on brilliantly to beat stable-mate Teahupoo by a nose – an unprecedented achievement for trainer, jockey, owner and tipster! Those who heeded Leonna’s advice must have been weighed down by their pockets after collecting.
Wonder why @LeonnaMayor is one of the best in the business? Here's why ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/yd0MGIC6Mo
— William Hill Racing (@WillHillRacing) March 16, 2023
The SITA racing team worked tirelessly on William Hill’s social accounts over the four days, spreading the selections of their top-tipping partners to punters, as well as previews and rewinds from past Festivals. The Inside Track proved to be a popular, entertaining and informative vlog-cast in the weeks leading up to the Cheltenham week and featured numerous famous faces discussing their love of the game.
Day Two
Wednesday’s crowning moment for SITA was ThoroughBid-graduate Maskada’s win in the Grand Annual at lengthy odds of 22/1. The mare, trained by Henry de Bromhead having been sold in ThoroughBid’s March Sale for £80,000 in 2022, defied expectations by beating the favourite home by six-and-a-half lengths. This was the highest profile win by a ThoroughBid graduate since the company’s inception in 2021, so it was a terrific achievement for all involved and was the icing on the cake of a great day’s racing.
We responded to this landmark accomplishment by promoting the result across all channels and in print, moving quickly to place a congratulatory advert in Gold Cup day’s edition of the Racing Post, thereby generating new interest in the company’s upcoming sale. Perhaps another Cheltenham winner will be sold in this year’s Spring Sale!
MASKADA 💥
— ThoroughBid (@thorough_bid) March 15, 2023
🤝 Sold for £80,000 in our 2022 March Sale
🐴 Trained by @HenrydeBromhead
🏇 Ridden by @DarraghOKeeffe8
🥇 WINNER of the Grand Annual Challenge! #CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/01zZVnJ1ka
🙌 Cheering MASKADA into the winners' enclosure!
— ThoroughBid (@thorough_bid) March 15, 2023
Bought for £80,000 at the @thorough_bid March Sale, the Masked Marvel mare lands the Grand Annual @CheltenhamRaces!
👏 @CoolmaraS @HenrydeBromhead @DarraghOKeeffe8 pic.twitter.com/dOJZTTP9lY
Day Four
Galopin Des Champs’ easy triumph in the Gold Cup on the final day of the Festival was another spectacular moment and a joy to watch. It was a real pleasure for the SITA racing team to be at Cheltenham to watch such a fabulous horse show his best having been so well fancied by William Hill ambassadors Nick Luck and Barry Geraghty. Similarly, the result of the following Hunters’ Chase provided even more excitement for us when ThoroughBid-sold Its On The Line, bought for only £8,000, finished a close second to Premier Magic. Altogether a superb week for the online auction house and it was a delight to be involved in promoting their success over the four days.
Roll on next year!