Old Gold Cup back in spotlight on race day

The precise whereabouts of the original Gold Cup became a mystery when the York executive tried to trace it two years ago for the 50th anniversary of Flat racing’s most enduring sponsorship deal.

However it was finally traced to the National Horse Racing Museum at Newmarket and will now return to the Knavesmire ahead of this year’s renewal.

Back in 1960, the Booth family collected their trophy along with the lions share of the £4,127 prize money after their three-year-old filly Fougalle had carried featherweight jockey Norman McIntosh to success for Malton trainer Rufus Beasley after holding off the flying finish of Billum.

Then the race was known as the Magnet Cup in acknowledgement of one of Tadcaster-based John Smith’s brews at the time, with the prize presented by a Mr Riley-Smith from the brewery family watched by Major Petch who was clerk of the course. Fast forward five decades and the prize money is now £150,000 and the trophy is a magnificent hand crafted Wedgewood vase that was won last year by champion apprentice Martin Lane on Wigmore Hall.

In a controversial finish, he narrowly denied Kings Gambit – trained at Tadcaster by Tom Tate and who will have up to three runners in this Saturday’s contest.