Galopin Des Champs

Owned by Audrey Turley and trained by Willie Mullins in Closutton, Muine Bheag, County Carlow, Galopin Des Champs has been hailed by David Jennings of the ‘Racing Post’ as ‘the greatest staying chaser of his generation’. Still only a nine-year-old, the grandson of top National Hunt sire Sholokhov has, at the time of writing, won 13 of his 21 races over hurdles and fences, the most recent of which was an impressive seven-and-a-half-length victory over stable companion Fact To File in the Savills Chase at Leopardstown on December 28, 2024.

As far as the Cheltenham Festival is concerned, Galopin Des Champs already has three wins to his name and is desperately unlucky not to have four, having come to grief at the final fence in the Golden Miller Novices’ Chase in 2022 when 12 lengths ahead of his nearest pursuer, Bob Olinger. Prior to that mishap, Galopin Des Champs had opened his account at Prestbury Park with a ready, two-and-a-quarter-length victory over Langer Dan in the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle in 2021.

After three more victories over fences, all at Grade 1 level and all at long-odds on, Galopin Des Champs was sent off favourite for his first attempt in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. He had little difficulty in justifying his market position, keeping on strongly on the run-in to win by 7 lengths, going away, from the King George VI Chase winner, Bravemansgame. In 2024, Galopin Des Champs defended his Gold Cup title, at a shade of odds-on, successfully avoiding the riderless Fastorslow on the run-in to beat Gerri Colombe by three-and-a-half lengths. Mullins said afterwards that the performance put Galopin Des Champs in the ‘superstar category’ and, granted that he has already achieved a Timeform rating of 181 – just 1lb inferior to the likes of Kicking King, Best Mate and See More Business, to name but three – few would argue.