Attacks on the Cheltenham Festival are easy, lazy and ignore the bigger picture

It was thankfully free of major riding infringements, yet among sectors of the media, both professional and social, the 2020 Cheltenham Festival has become a whipping boy.

We would be inflating our own pulling power if we believed the festival is an event of enormous national significance and resonance. It is a racing event, hugely important in our own parish and within Gloucestershire, but not one with which people outside of those communities would generally be any more than mildly familiar.

Everyone knows of the Grand National. Millions of people interact with it through television and betting – even when the race is conducted in virtual form. Most people also know of Royal Ascot, although it is famous as much for the participation of the Queen, the pageantry and the fashion as it is for the action that takes place on the track. The Gold Cup is wonderful but in racing there are any number of Gold Cups. Whisper it quietly, but most people would have no idea which is which.