And they’re off! High spirits reign during first day at Cheltenham

There was a false start to the first race, a tangle of horses that delayed the famous old Cheltenham roar by a few seconds. But when it came it, was full-throated and passionate.

“It’s good to be back,” said race-goer John Knowles, a retired builder from Cheshire who was dressed top to toe in emerald green and gold – the colours of his favourite racehorse owner, JP McManus. “I missed Cheltenham last year. I watched it on the telly, but it’s not the same. I’ve been coming here for 30 years and this place grabs you; it’s very special.”

The 2021 festival took place behind closed doors because of Covid. The year before, it was staged under something of a cloud as the coronavirus storm loomed, and came to be regarded by many as a super-spreader event.

So this year’s festival has been much anticipated. Gold Cup day on Friday sold out more quickly than ever before, and a record crowd – approaching 70,000 – piled into the sun-dappled course for day one on Tuesday.

Lauren Hall, 25, a veterinary nurse, was drinking in the atmosphere. She worked at last year’s very different festival. “It was a really strange experience,” she said. “I remember there being drones everywhere filming everything, but there were no people. Walking into this year’s festival was such a thrill. The crowds look enormous. It feels like we have finally put the pandemic behind us. The atmosphere is incredible.”

The 2022 festival is once again that riot of colour and life which for many signals the start of spring. Tweed-wearing aristocrats rub shoulders with suited-and-booted reality TV stars, footballers, farmers and fun-seekers. Among the stars out and about on day one were pop stars Ronan Keating and Rod Stewart and the chef and presenter Prue Leith.

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