Cheltenham Jumper Series - Cheltenham Festival Bound 2011
The Series: The NZ Champion Series is a points-based competition to be contested during the 2011 Jump racing season.
The connections of the horse that wins the Series will be offered the opportunity to compete at the Cheltenham Festival in England in March 2012. Assistance will also be offered with logistics, stabling and access to training facilities in the UK.The purpose of the series is to identify the most outstanding and consistent jump racing horse in the country. The series is open to both hurdlers and steeplechasers and equal opportunities exist for both divisions. The principal prize will be the payment of £6000 (approximately $NZ12, 000) towards transport costs and the guarantee of a start in a Championship race at the Festival. This contribution has been kindly offered by Cheltenham Racecourse. A trophy will also be supplied by NZ Jumps Inc to the winning horse, regardless of whether the opportunity to travel to Cheltenham is accepted.
The schedule includes 24 individual races. Points are tiered in relation to the grade of the event. The schedule of events can be viewed below and runs from May 8th to October 16th.
The Points: The overall winner will simply be the horse with the most points.
If a race results in a dead-heat the points for the positions involved in the dead-heat will be added together and divided by the number of horses involved in the dead-heat and awarded to each horse involved. In the case of the series eventuating in a draw, the decision will go in favour of the horse that scored the most points in Prestige Jump Category 1 races, downwards. NZTR and NZ Jumps Inc will collate and publish the cumulative points. These will be published on the NZTR website – nzracing.co.nz. In the case of any dispute NZTR reserves the right to make a judgment and their decision will be final.
The Prize: The winning owners will be given just 72 hours to decide if they will take up the offer from when the final points are published/released by NZTR. They will be contacted by phone by NZTR and informed about the prize on offer. If they decline the prize, it will be offered to the second placed horse whose owners will have 48-hours to decide. In the case of them declining the offer will be presented to the owners of the third placed horse.
If none of the owners of the first three placed horses accept the prize, it may be awarded to any other horse trained in New Zealand at the discretion of NZTR, NZ Jumps and Cheltenham Racecourse. The prize will be paid after the horse has competed at the Festival or at the discretion of Cheltenham Racecourse. Cheltenham Racecourse reserves the right to not pay the prize if a horse wins the same or more in prize money as a result of competing at the Festival.
The Festival: The Cheltenham Festival is a four day race meeting with a programme of 27 races.
Schedule of Principal Championship Races
| Tuesday, March 13 | Champion Hurdle | 3300m |
| Wednesday, March 14 | Queen Mother Champion Chase | 3200m |
| Thursday, March 15 | World Hurdle | 4800m |
| Friday, March 16 | Gold Cup Chase | 5300m |
Full schedule of races for the Festival and the conditions of entry can be sourced from by contacting Simon Claisse, Clerk of the Course/Director of Racing at Cheltenham Racecourse: simon.claisse@jockeyclubracecourses.com or by looking at www.cheltenhamracecourse.co.uk. Entry into any race outside of the Championship races can not be guaranteed although every effort will be made to ensure that a suitable opportunity sourced.
