There was a magnetism about Istabraq and Charlie Swan that was almost rock and roll in nature

It's 22 years since Istabraq last graced a racecourse on that ethereal afternoon at Cheltenham in 2002 yet still his name resonates like few others.

We've seen many truly exceptional jumps horses in those intervening two decades, like Best Mate, Kauto Star, Hurricane Fly and Sprinter Sacre. There has been no shortage of equine superstars who have elevated the sport to stratospheric heights, and maybe that's part of the reason why Istabraq's effervescent glow still lights up the nostalgic firmament like no other. He burst into our consciousness at a time when repeat winners of Champion Hurdles and Gold Cups wasn't really a thing. No horse had won more than one Champion Hurdle since See You Then secured his treble in 1987 and L'Escargot was the last to win a second Gold Cup way back in 1971. It was a different world to the one we know now, and Istabraq turned it upside down.

There was a certain pathos to his story from the moment he fell into the hands of JP McManus and Aidan O'Brien that originated in the awful fate suffered by John Durkan after he sourced the 83-rated Flat horse out of the yard of his boss John Gosden.