Alan Tyers ITV smartly away with a fake roar and focus turned on the goodies
Trying to cover a niche sport on a mainstream channel puts ITV Racing in the business of finding relatable stories, and that means character and action. The Cheltenham crowd was obviously a huge loss on day one but the TV broadcast handled this by leaning into it, using an early shot from a high-wire camera of the presenters Ed Chamberlin and Francesca Cumani looking tiny and isolated in the deserted parade ring.
Other than putting a “roar” over the first few seconds of the first race, and judiciously using camera angles that did not dwell too much on the lack of fans, the broadcast seemed to acknowledge that there is no point in trying to kid the punters. Racing, it has to be said, has plenty of form when it comes to trying to hoodwink the customers; indeed, its entire basis is the parting of the fool from their money. So, kudos to ITV for a robust and balanced Gabriel Clarke feature about whether the Festival should have gone ahead last year.
It allowed British Horseracing’s Nick Rust his line that they were just obeying orders from the Government to carry on regardless, while producing erstwhile ITV stablemate Piers Morgan to say that racing should have called it off no matter what the Government said.
Strange to see Morgan flying the flag for cancel culture, but there you go. His point seemed so unreasonable – what sporting or cultural commercial event could be expected to defy the Government and insist on cutting its own throat – that he functioned as a straw man.
By getting Morgan to make such a blundering, weak argument, the Clarke feature did the job for racing without being seen to. Nicely played. On the matter of Gordon Elliott, though, there was a suggestion of that defensive, reflexive omerta that ultimately holds racing back. Is it right that a person banned from the sport for such a grotesquery as Elliott is still sending horses, and indeed winners such as Black Tears in the Mares’ Hurdle, to Cheltenham
Former BHA chief admits last year’s go-ahead was a mistake
Nick Rust, former chief executive of the British Horseracing Association, has admitted that last year’s Festival should 2020 not have gone ahead. Rust, who stepped down in December, told ITV: “Now that we know mass events do, indeed, add significant risk, obviously we shouldn’t have gone ahead, but that’s only in hindsight.”
Cheltenham was under the caretaker-manager fig leaf of Mrs Denise Foster?
ITV could have done more on this trainer-in-name-only story but, in fairness, the TINO angle will probably come again and, after a grim few weeks, ITV and racing could be forgiven for focusing on the goodies rather than the baddies. And there were plenty of fine moments: the technical analysis from Ruby Walsh has taken the programming forward in the Monday Night Football fashion, and perhaps the lessening of crowd, vox pop, fashion and banter angles made a broadcast for fans of the sport rather than the occasion.
Overall, a game performance in testing conditions.
Racing’s authorities were accused of betraying animal welfare after a horse from banned trainer Gordon Elliott’s stable triumphed on the Cheltenham Festival’s opening day.
Elliott is serving a year-long ban – of which six months are suspended – after a photograph emerged of him sitting on a dead horse. Although unable to train, he remains at his stables while Denise Foster has taken on his licence.
Foster had six runners yesterday, and saddled Black Tears to win the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle under jockey Jack Kennedy, who said the victory came after a “tough time” for everyone in Elliott’s yard.
Dene Stansall, racing consultant for campaign group Animal Aid, said: “That penalty, as we would expect from the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board, really doesn’t commit to anything in the way of