THE proposed changes to the Cheltenham Festival came in for much debate last week, with views ranging from those who were predictably horrified (largely from the traditionalists and/or amateur riders due to changes to that anachronism, the National Hunt Chase) to those who saw the changes as a good start, but wanted more, and various shades of indignation in between.

Aside from the amateurs, who are aggrieved at the lack of consultation, the loudest voices are those who feel that turning the National Hunt Chase and the Cross Country Chase into handicaps is against the ethos of the Cheltenham Festival, arguing simply that Cheltenham in March should be about the best running against the best.