39 in inaugural Daily Telegraph Festival Trophy Chase

A total of 39 entries is revealed today for the first running of The Daily Telegraph Festival Trophy Chase, the new championship event taking place over two miles and five furlongs on Thursday, March 17.

»Click here for Entries.

With a £150,000 total prize fund, The Daily Telegraph Festival Trophy Chase is the most valuable addition to this year's first four-day Festival and is shaping up into a great battle for chasers whose ideal trip is between the two miles of the Queen Mother Champion Chase and extended three miles and two furlongs of the totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup. And 26 of the entries do not have an engagement in either of those other two races.

Among those entered are Stan James King George VI Chase winner Kicking King, the 2000 Queen Elizabeth Champion Chase hero Edredon Bleu, recent Kinloch Brae Chase first and second, Rathgar Beau and Central House; Buckby Lane, winner of Cheltenham's Ladbrokes Trophy Chase on January 29 after more than a year off, while champion trainer Martin Pipe accounts for no less than nine of the entries.

These include David Johnson's exciting trio Celestial Gold, Our Vic and Therealbandit as well as Seebald, owned by footballers Robbie Fowler and Steve McManaman. Trainer Paul Nicholls has four entries - Le Duc, Le Roi Miguel, My Will and Thisthatandtother - while Nicky Henderson's entries include Fondmort, winner of last season's Paddy Power Gold Cup.

The Daily Telegraph Festival Trophy Chase is number 47 of the 63 races in the British Horseracing Board's £300,000 Order Of Merit.

Edward Gillespie, Cheltenham Racecourse's Managing Director, said: 'The Daily Telegraph Festival Trophy Chase promises to be a really high-quality addition to the 2005 Festival and we are delighted to see the inaugural running so well supported.'