The 1989 Cheltenham Gold Cup was a horse race

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

 which took place at Cheltenham

Cheltenham Racecourse

Cheltenham Racecourse is a racecourse for horse racing events, located at Prestbury Park, in the suburban village of Prestbury on the outskirts of the English town of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire...

 on Thursday March 16, 1989. It was the 62nd running of the Cheltenham Gold Cup

Cheltenham Gold Cup

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt chase in the United Kingdom which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 3 miles and 2½ furlongs , and during its running there are twenty-two fences to be jumped...

, and it was won by the pre-race favourite Desert Orchid

Desert Orchid

Desert Orchid , affectionately known as Dessie, was an English racehorse. The gallant grey achieved iconic status within National Hunt racing, where he was much loved by supporters for his front-running attacking style, iron will and extreme versatility. He was rated the fifth best National Hunt...

. The winner was ridden by Simon Sherwood and trained by David Elsworth

David Elsworth

David Elsworth is a horse trainer living in the United Kingdom. He is perhaps best known for being the trainer of Desert Orchid, 1988 Grand National winner Rhyme 'n' Reason and 1990 Queen Mother Champion Chase winner Barnbrook Again - just three horses amongst a host of top-class performers over...

.

The race was later voted the "Greatest Race of All Time" in a Racing Post

Racing Post

The Racing Post is a British daily horse racing, greyhound racing and sports betting newspaper, appearing in print form and online.From 30 May 2011 - 3 July 2011 it had a circulation of 56,507.-History:...

 poll, ahead of the 1973 Grand National

Grand National

The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...

 and the 1975 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

Race details

• Sponsor: Tote
  The Tote
  The Tote, formerly the Horserace Totalisator Board, is a British bookmaker with head offices in Wigan. It was owned from its formation in 1928 by the UK Government but was sold to Betfred in July 2011. Under the brand totesport the Tote has 514 high street betting shops, outlets on Britain's 60...
  
  
• Winner's prize money: £66,635.00
• Going: Heavy
• Number of runners: 13
• Winner's time: 7m 17.6s

Full result

	*	Horse	Age	Jockey	Trainer †	SP Starting Prices In horse racing, the starting price is the odds prevailing in the on-course fixed-odds betting market at the time a race begins. The method by which SPs are set for each runner varies in different countries but is generally by consensus of an appointed panel on the basis of their observations of...
1		Desert Orchid Desert Orchid Desert Orchid , affectionately known as Dessie, was an English racehorse. The gallant grey achieved iconic status within National Hunt racing, where he was much loved by supporters for his front-running attacking style, iron will and extreme versatility. He was rated the fifth best National Hunt...	10	Simon Sherwood	David Elsworth David Elsworth David Elsworth is a horse trainer living in the United Kingdom. He is perhaps best known for being the trainer of Desert Orchid, 1988 Grand National winner Rhyme 'n' Reason and 1990 Queen Mother Champion Chase winner Barnbrook Again - just three horses amongst a host of top-class performers over...	5/2 fav
2	1½	Yahoo Yahoo (horse) Yahoo was a successful National Hunt racehorse, who is best remembered for a memorable second in the 1989 Cheltenham Gold Cup to Desert Orchid....	8	Tom Morgan	John Edwards	25/1
3	8	Charter Party	11	Richard Dunwoody Richard Dunwoody Thomas Richard Dunwoody MBE is a retired British jockey in National Hunt racing. He was a three-time Champion Jockey, riding 1699 British winners in his career. His father was a leading Point to Point rider...	David Nicholson David Nicholson (horse racing) David Nicholson was a British National Hunt jockey and trainer. He was British jump racing Champion Trainer in the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons....	14/1
4	dist	Bonanza Boy	8	Peter Scudamore Peter Scudamore Peter Scudamore , known universally as 'Scu', is a former jockey and trainer in National Hunt racing. He was an eight-time Champion Jockey , riding 1,678 winners in his career...	Martin Pipe Martin Pipe Martin Pipe was a racehorse trainer until his retirement in April 2006.The son of a West-Country bookmaker, Pipe was an amateur jockey before turning his attention to training in 1974 at Nicholashayne, Devon, near Wellington, England....	15/2
5	dist	West Tip West Tip West Tip was a racehorse who won the Grand National in 1986, ridden by Richard Dunwoody. He fell in the 1985 race at Bechers Brook on the second circuit, and finished fourth in 1987 and 1988, second in 1989, tenth in 1990, on each occasion he was ridden by Dunwoody. He was retired after the 1990...	12	Peter Hobbs	Michael Oliver	66/1
Ref	Fence 22	Cavvies Clown	9	Ross Arnott	David Elsworth David Elsworth David Elsworth is a horse trainer living in the United Kingdom. He is perhaps best known for being the trainer of Desert Orchid, 1988 Grand National winner Rhyme 'n' Reason and 1990 Queen Mother Champion Chase winner Barnbrook Again - just three horses amongst a host of top-class performers over...	8/1
PU	Fence 22	Pegwell Bay	8	Carl Llewellyn	Tim Forster	25/1
BD	Fence 20	Ballyhane	8	Richard Rowe Richard Rowe (horse racing) Richard Rowe is a National Hunt racehorse trainer and a former jockey in the United Kingdom.-Career as a jockey:* 1982 - Whitbread Gold Cup winner Shady Deal* 1988 - Scilly Isles Novices' Chase winner Yeoman Broker...	Josh Gifford Josh Gifford Josh Gifford is a former jockey and trainer in National Hunt racing. He was a four-time Champion Jockey, riding 642 winners in his career....	50/1
Fell	Fence 20	Ten Plus	9	Kevin Mooney	Fulke Walwyn Fulke Walwyn Fulke Thomas Tyndall Walwyn was a British jockey and racehorse trainer specialising mainly in National Hunt racing. He was born in Wrexham and died in Newbury.He was educated at Malvern College....	11/2
Fell	Fence 17	Slalom	8	John White	Michael Robinson	33/1
Fell	Fence 10	The Thinker	11	Chris Grant	Arthur Stephenson	15/2
Fell	Fence 7	Carvill's Hill	7	Ken Morgan	Jim Dreaper (IRE)	5/1
Fell	Fence 6	Golden Freeze	7	Brendan Sheridan	Jumbo Wilkinson	16/1

* The distances between the horses are shown in lengths

Length (horse racing)

A horse length, or simply length, is a unit of measurement that refers to the length of a horse from nose to tail, approximately 8 feet, It is commonly used in Thoroughbred horse racing, where it describes the distance between horses in a race...

 or shorter. Ref = refused; PU = pulled-up; BD = brought down.
† Trainers are based in Great Britain unless indicated.

Winner's details

Further details of the winner, Desert Orchid

Desert Orchid

Desert Orchid , affectionately known as Dessie, was an English racehorse. The gallant grey achieved iconic status within National Hunt racing, where he was much loved by supporters for his front-running attacking style, iron will and extreme versatility. He was rated the fifth best National Hunt...

:

• Foaled: April 11, 1979 in Great Britain
  Great Britain
  Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
  
  
• Sire: Grey Mirage; Dam: Flower Child
  Flower child
  Flower child originated as a synonym for hippie, especially the idealistic young people who gathered in San Francisco and environs during the 1967 Summer of Love. It was the custom of "flower children" to wear and distribute flowers or floral-themed decorations to symbolize altruistic ideals of...
  
   (Brother)
• Owner: Richard Burridge
  Richard Burridge
  Richard Burridge, born in 1951 in Rothbury, Northumberland, is a film screenwriter and author. His credits include Absolute Beginners . With his family he is an owner of several racehorses, including the late Desert Orchid.- External links :*...
  
  
• Breeder: James Burridge