First French runner to tackle Brexit and Covid travel hurdles arrives in Britain

French Champion Hurdle winner Paul's Saga is set to break new ground on Saturday at Warwick when she will become the first French-trained horse to compete in Britain since the end of the post-Brexit transition period.

In doing so she will lay a pathway for trainer David Cottin leading up to next month's Cheltenham Festival, where Paul's Saga could line up in the Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle, while Easysland is on course to defend his crown in the Glenfarclas Chase over the cross-country fences.

Travel in and out of Britain for both horses and people has been complicated not only by leaving the European Union but by the ongoing Covid-19 crisis. But with help and guidance from Jockey Club Racecourses – owner of Warwick and Cheltenham – both Paul's Saga and Jason Kiely, a key component in the Cottin operation, have arrived safely ahead of the Close Brothers Warwick Mares' Hurdle.