York Racecourse: Love Island's Chris Hughes lays down challenge to racegoers on final day of the season
As York Racecourse prepares for its season’s finale today, a famous face lays down a reflex challenge to racegoers. Steph Daley finds out more.
He’s well known to horseracing goers and television viewers from his stints on ITV Racing, but at York racecourse where Chris Hughes will make an appearance today, he’s also an amateur jockey, having taken part in the Ride of their Lives charity race there in 2018.
This week, the personality, who made his way into the public psyche in the third series of hit reality show Love Island, will be back in Yorkshire.
He told the Yorkshire Post: “York personally is in my top three racecourses.
“I love the atmosphere, I love the way it is run. I rode in the charity race back in the day.
“So York has sentimental value for me, it’s good fun.”
Chris will be on the Knavesmire in his capacity as an ambassador for bookmakers Coral, who are sponsoring a number of races, including the feature race of the day, the Coral Sprint Trophy.
The Class two heritage handicap is run over six furlongs and is fiercely competitive.
Chris will presenting the coveted trophy to the winner, and there will be a chance to join him in the presentation by taking him on in a Batak game to test the fastest reflexes.
It sounds a little bit like splat the rat, but is much more sophisticated, with a board lit up with lights that players have to react to quickly.
Chris said it is a Formula One-based test, but he admitted he is unlikely to set the bar very high.
"This racing reflex will be on the concourse near the champagne bar, so there will be lots of footfall.
"It will be open until the start of the second race, where people can test their reflexes against me, and they can go into a draw to win the ultimate raceday experience, where they have access to the Coral box in the Melrose Stand, parade ring access, and they help me to present the trophy.”
The 31-year-old has horses in his blood, having grown up near Cheltenham, as a neighbour of former jump jockey and now trainer Jonjo O’Neill.
He used O’Neill’s facilities at Jackdaws Castle, Temple Guiting, to train when he took part in the Best Western Hotels and Macmillan Ride of Their Lives at York racecourse in June 2018.
The annual charity race is very popular, with money raised from it going to Macmillan Cancer Care.
This year the amount raised so far went past the £10m mark.
"I grew up in Cheltenham, rode next to Jonjo, that is why I trained for my charity race there,” said Chris, “though now it feels like a lifetime ago.
“We raised a good amount of money for Macmillan, and the whole experience was great fun. I’d urge other people to get involved with it.”
Whether he would consider riding competitively again, however, is open to conjecture, given the weight jockeys have to get down to.
"I have a bit more muscle mass now than I did when I did the charity ride,” he said.
“I’m about a stone heavier, so riding in a race would be difficult, but I still ride out all the time. I have a horse in Newmarket and I still love it.
"I’m based in Ascot but my family is still around Cheltenham, and the horse is at Newmarket so I get a bit all over the place.”
Chris is also an ambassador for the Coral Racing Club, starting to work with Coral a number of years ago as it fitted with his love of horseracing.
The Coral Racing Club is now approaching its second birthday and is a free to join ownership club and there are a total of 12 horses in training.
North Yorkshire-based trainers John and Sean Quinn, who have a yard in Malton, are Racing Club trainers and train Phoenix of Dreams.
“It’s free to join and we have more than 100,000 members now,” said Chris.
"Winners win a share of the prize money.
"It gives people a taste of racehorse ownership.”
The prize money on offer at York today for the Sprint Trophy is £100,000.
Today’s seven race programme also begins at 1.30pm with all seven races backed by Coral, a brand that first supported this day back in 1979.
The meeting will also see the conclusion of the season long contests to be top jockey and trainer at York.
In the Living North-sponsored jockeys’ race, after a memorable Sky Bet Ebor Festival, Ryan Moore currently leads the way on eight winners.
The leaderboard of the Charles Clinkard Top Trainer at York is headed by Andrew Balding, bidding for his first York title having posted a remarkable nine victories to date; the likes of Ralph Becket and Yorkshire handlers, Kevin Ryan and David O’Meara, sit close behind.
The equine ambassador to York Racecourse, Remy, will make his final appearance on today.