Cheltenham Festival sees smallest crowd since 1993

The smallest Cheltenham Festival crowd since 1993 was recorded on Wednesday, with 41,949 spectators at the track.

It was a drop of nearly 5,000 from last year and mirrored a fall in Tuesday's crowd which was down to 55,498 from 60,181.

Attendance for the Queen Mother Champion Chase day on Wednesday was nearly 65,000 in 2022. This year's figure was the lowest since 40,662 on the second day of the fixture 32 years ago.

Absent regulars have cited the cost of accommodation, tickets, travel and food and drink as reasons for missing the meeting, which was extended to four days from three in 2005.

Thousands have travelled to Spanish destinations in the Costa del Sol, including Benidorm and the island of Tenerife, to watch the action on big screens and say a week in the sunshine is cheaper than attending the fixture.

Racecourse chief executive Guy Lavender, who took over at the course earlier this year, wrote an open letter before the meeting which acknowledged that attendances would be down.

"The decline is not catastrophic but nor are we seeing growing attendances," he said.

The total attendance for the week is still expected to pass 200,000 but will be signifcantly down on the record 280,000 that attended the first post-Covid meeting open to spectators in 2022.

In September, Festival organisers announced changes aimed at improving competition in races and the experience of racegoers.

A new park-and-ride system, additional coaches and extra hardstanding areas at the course for car parking have been introduced.

Cheltenham have frozen ticket prices, increased food and drink options and is exploring new accommodation deals.

"We will be listening to all the feedback we receive from this year's festival and already have plenty of time set aside in the summer to begin the process of reviewing, resetting and rebuilding for the years ahead," said Lavender in his open letter.

General admission for Cheltenham Gold Cup day on Friday has sold out, with nearly 70,000 expected at the Gloucestershire track.