MCR Hurdle
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The Liffey Handicap Hurdle is a
National Hunt National Hunt Racing, also known as Jump Racing, is a form of horse racing particular to many European countries, including, but not limited to: France, Great Britain and Ireland. Jump Racing requires horses to jump over fences and ditches. In ...
hurdle race in Ireland which is open to
horses The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 milli ...
aged four years or older. It is run at
Leopardstown Leopardstown (), historically called Ballinlore, is a suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, at the foot of the Wicklow Mountains. With institutional lands and a large racecourse, it is divided by the M50 motorway (Ireland), M50 motorw ...
over a distance of about 2 miles (3,219 metres), and during its running there are eight hurdles to be jumped. It is a handicap race, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late January or early February . The present race has evolved from the Irish Sweeps Hurdle, an event which was first run in 1969. This was one of several races which contributed to the
Irish Hospitals' Sweepstake The Irish Hospitals' Sweepstake was a lottery established in the Irish Free State in 1930 as the Irish Free State Hospitals' Sweepstake to finance hospitals. It is generally referred to as the Irish Sweepstake or Irish Sweepstakes, sometimes ab ...
, a scheme to help fund investment in Ireland's health service. Thousands of tickets were sold to the public, and each was allocated with the name of a horse due to run in a particular race. The tickets corresponding to the winning horse could yield a substantial dividend. The Irish Sweeps Hurdle initially took place at
Fairyhouse Fairyhouse Racecourse is a horse racing venue in Ireland. It is situated in the parish of Ratoath in County Meath, on the R155 regional road, off the N3. It hosted its first race in 1848 and since 1870 has been the home of the Irish Grand ...
, and it was then transferred to Leopardstown in 1971. In its early years the race took place in December, and prior to becoming a handicap it served as a major trial for the
Champion Hurdle The Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt racing, National Hunt Hurdling (horse race), hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to Horse racing, horses aged four years ...
when it was won by champions such as Persian War,
Comedy of Errors ''The Comedy of Errors'' is one of William Shakespeare's early plays. It is his shortest and one of his most farce, farcical Shakespearean comedy, comedies, with a major part of the humour coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addit ...
and Night Nurse, as well as the future
Cheltenham Gold Cup The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt horse race run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse in England, over a distance of about 3 miles 2½ furlon ...
winner,
Captain Christy Captain Christy (foaled 1967) was a champion Irish-bred and Irish-trained hurdler and steeplechaser who won the Cheltenham Gold Cup as a novice (racehorse), novice. In spite of a tendency to make mistakes, Captain Christy was an outstanding hu ...
. A second phase of the race's history began in 1987, when it became known as the Ladbroke Hurdle. This event was run at Leopardstown each year in January until 2000, but it was then switched to a different venue,
Ascot Ascot, Ascott or Askot may refer to: Places Australia * Ascot, Queensland, suburb of Brisbane * Ascot, Queensland (Toowoomba Region), a locality * Ascot Park, South Australia, suburb of Adelaide * Ascot (Ballarat), town near Ballarat in Victoria ...
in
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
. Since 2001 this has been the usual venue of the race, now named the Ladbrokes Handicap Hurdle, and the race is now scheduled to be run in December. The Pierse Hurdle, named after its sponsor Pierse Contracting Ltd, was introduced at Leopardstown in January 2001. It had an identical format to that of the "Ladbroke", and it was in effect a continuation of the same event. The race was sponsored by MCR Group in 2010 and 2011, and Boylesports bookmakers took over the sponsorship from 2012. From 2016 to 2021 the race was sponsored by
Ladbrokes Coral Ladbrokes Coral is a British gambling company. Its product offering includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. The Ladbrokes portion of the group was established in 1886, and Coral in 1926. In November 2016, the ...
bookmakers - the race carried Coral's name from 2016 to 2018, and became the Ladbrokes Hurdle in 2019. It has been run under the present title since 2022.


Records

Most successful horse since 1969 (2 wins): *
Comedy of Errors ''The Comedy of Errors'' is one of William Shakespeare's early plays. It is his shortest and one of his most farce, farcical Shakespearean comedy, comedies, with a major part of the humour coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addit ...
– ''1973, 1974'' * Fredcoteri - ''1983, 1984'' * Redundant Pal- ''1986, 1990'' * Off You Go - '' 2018, 2019'' Leading
jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...
since 1969 (4 wins): *
Tom Taaffe Tom Taaffe (b. 15 June 1963) is a former Irish racehorse trainer who was based at Portree Stables, Boston, Ardclough, Straffan, in County Kildare. He trained the 2005 Cheltenham Gold Cup winning horse Kicking King, who also won the Boxing Day ...
– '' Fredcoteri (1983, 1984), Bonalma (1986), Roark (1988)'' Leading trainer since 1969 (6 wins): * Arthur Moore - '' Irian (1979), Fredcoteri (1983, 1984), Bonalma (1986), Roark (1988), Graphic Equaliser (1998) ''


Winners

* ''Weights given in
stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...
s and
pound Pound or Pounds may refer to: Units * Pound (currency), various units of currency * Pound sterling, the official currency of the United Kingdom * Pound (mass), a unit of mass * Pound (force), a unit of force * Rail pound, in rail profile * A bas ...
s.'' Note: Some sources may not regard the current race (2001–present) as a continuation of the Ladbroke Hurdle (1987–2000).


See also

*
Horse racing in Ireland Horse racing in Ireland is intricately linked with Culture of Ireland, Irish culture and society. The racing of horses has a long history on the island, being mentioned in some of the Irish mythology, earliest texts. Domestically, racing is on ...
*
List of Irish National Hunt races A list of notable National Hunt racing, National Hunt Horse racing, horse races which take place annually in Ireland, under the authority of Horse Racing Ireland, including all races which currently hold Grade 1 or Grade 2 status. Grade 1 Grade ...


References

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Racing Post ''Racing Post'' is a British daily horse racing, greyhound racing, and sports betting publisher published in print and digital formats. It is printed in tabloid format from Monday to Sunday. , it has an average daily circulation of 60,629 ...
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bbc.co.uk
– ''Hurdle highlight at Leopardstown.'' * – ''Ladbroke Hurdle at Ascot, December 22, 2001.'' * {{Race Meeting, Dublin Racing Festival, Turf National Hunt races in Ireland National Hunt hurdle races Leopardstown Racecourse 1969 establishments in Ireland Horse races established in 1969