Cheltenham Festival

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Anglo Irish Bank New Sponsor At Cheltenham Festival
09/10/05

Cheltenham Racecourse is delighted to welcome Anglo Irish Bank as the new sponsor of the opening race of The Festival, the Supreme Novices' Hurdle, which in 2006 takes place on Tuesday, March 14, together with support for the two-mile novice hurdle races in the jump Pattern across Britain.

Anglo Irish Bank operates in Britain from London, Manchester, Banbury, Birmingham and Glasgow, while its bases in Ireland are located in Dublin, Belfast, Cork, Galway, Limerick & Waterford.

It is a focused business bank with a private banking arm, providing Business Banking, Treasury and Wealth Management services. Founded in Dublin in 1964, Anglo Irish Bank also has offices in the USA, Austria, Switzerland and the Isle of Man and is quoted on both the London and Dublin Stock Exchanges.

The two-mile Anglo Irish Bank Supreme Novices' Hurdle, won by Arcalis in 2005 for the Graham Wylie/Howard Johnson/Graham Lee partnership, boasts an impressive list of previous winners with the likes of future Smurfit Champion Hurdle victors Hors La Loi III (1999) and Bula (1970) proving successful, along with subsequent Queen Mother Champion Chase scorer Buck House (1983) and the mighty Flyingbolt (1964), trained by Arkle's handler Tom Dreaper, who also went on to win the Champion Chase.

L'Escargot (1968) progressed to land the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1970 and 1971, as well as the Grand National in 1975. More recently, both Best Mate and Kicking King finished runner-up in the Anglo Irish Bank Supreme Novices' Hurdle before winning the totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Irish trainers have an excellent record in the Anglo Irish Bank Supreme Novices' Hurdle, having registered no less than 35 wins since 1946, most recently with Brave Inca in 2004. In the early years of the contest, when it was known as the Gloucestershire Hurdle and divided into two divisions, the legendary Irish handler Vincent O'Brien amazingly trained the winner of 10 divisions between 1952 and 1959.

In addition to backing the Supreme Novices' Hurdle, Anglo Irish Bank will also be generously supporting the two-mile jump Pattern races in the lead-up to The Festival - the ££30,000 Anglo Irish Bank Novices' Hurdle (Cheltenham, November 11, 2005), the ££30,000 Anglo Irish Bank Novices' Hurdle (Ascot at Windsor, December 17, 2005), the ££50,000 Anglo Irish Bank Tolworth Hurdle (Sandown, January 7, 2006), the ££30,000 Anglo Irish Bank Novices' Hurdle (Haydock Park, January 21, 2006) and the ££28,000 Anglo Irish Bank Novices' Hurdle (Sandown, February 24, 2006).

David Murray, Deputy Managing Director of Anglo Irish Bank, commented today: "This is an extremely important sponsorship for the Bank and we are very pleased to form an association with one of the most prestigious race meetings of the Irish and UK calendar.

"The scale of this sponsorship is indicative of the growth and awareness that Anglo has achieved in the UK. We are now taking every opportunity to further consolidate that awareness.

"Horse racing has become increasingly popular amongst our target audience and this sponsorship is therefore an ideal fit for Anglo, giving us exposure to both UK & Irish, existing and potential customers. It provides an excellent opportunity to effectively promote the Bank, its corporate image and enhance brand loyalty both on and off the course."

Edward Gillespie, Managing Director at Cheltenham, said today: "Cheltenham is delighted to welcome Anglo Irish Bank on board as the sponsor of the Supreme Novices' Hurdle Pattern races from this autumn.

"The Anglo Irish Bank Supreme Novices' Hurdle holds a special position in Cheltenham folklore as it always opens The Festival, accompanied by a tremendous roar from the crowd. It has also provided a lot of success for the Irish over the years and looks to provide the perfect vehicle to promote Anglo Irish Bank.

"In addition, Anglo Irish Bank's sponsorship of the Pattern supporting the Supreme Novices' Hurdle illustrates the importance we and they put behind the Pattern.

"Each of the five events provides opportunities for the cream of the next generation of hurdlers to compete at the highest level in pursuit of a tilt at the championship - the Anglo Irish Bank Supreme Novices' Hurdle."

Cheltenham Racecourse, in conjunction with Anglo Irish Bank, will be announcing details of the Cheltenham Irish SME Sponsorship Award in Dublin on Tuesday, October 11.

This is a unique competition for Irish SMEs to win 45,000 euros worth of sponsorship involving a high-profile race at the Pillar Chase fixture at Cheltenham Racecourse on Saturday, January 28, 2006.

The Award is being launched by Michael O'Leary, Ryanair's Chief Executive Officer, at a Business Breakfast Forum in Dublin at Anglo Irish Bank entitled "Winning Entrepreneurs: Odds on for Success".

Now in its second year, the Award is designed to benefit small and medium-sized Irish businesses so that they can enjoy significant exposure to both Irish and UK audiences at one of the UK's most prestigious race meetings.

Last year's winner, based in Westmeath, Mr Crumb, a Westmeath-based food company specialising in stuffings, toppings and breadcrumbs, has experienced considerable benefits since.