EVERYONE'S BEST MATE AND HERO!

AHEAD OF THE CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL, WE LOOK AT A GOLD CUP LEGEND WHO DIED TRAGICALLY YOUNG

- BY CHRIS WRIGHT

THE roar that went up on that March day in 2004 was like no other - and the enclosure where punters stood and shouted now bears the name of the hero of the hour.

For three years after the turn of the Millennium, Best Mate lived up to that evocative moniker for Cheltenham Festival-goers - and earned a place in their hearts.

The gallant bay gelding galloped into racing immortality when he became just the fourth horse in history to win the Gold Cup three times.

It had been a long wait since the great Arkle claimed his treble in 1964-66, but the Henrietta Knight-trained Best Mate gave a new generation of National Hunt racing fans their own 'I was there moment'.

Under jockey Jim Culloty, he went to Prestbury Park three years in a row from 2002 to 2004. And three times he struck Gold.

Winning the blue riband of Jumps racing is one of the toughest assignments with only Golden Miller, who claimed five victories from 1932-36, Cottage Rake (three) from 1948-1950 and Arkle in the 1960s being the other treble heroes.

Best Mate became the fourth - but his story ended in tragedy when he was pulled up by Paul Carberry before collapsing on the track. He died of a heart attack at the age of just 10, running in the William Hill Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter Racecourse in 2005.

"The fact he was as good as he was, as honest as he was, and as consistent as he was, was why the public came to love him and deservedly so," Culloty, who had ridden Best Mate in 18 of his 22 races, said.