Cheltenham Gold Cup was responsible for all of the first five horses to finish – Bregawn, Captain John, Wayward Lad, Silver Buck and Ashley House. The 1986 winner, Dawn Run, is the only horse to have ever won both this race and the leading hurdle event, the Champion Hurdle. One of the most popular horses to win the Gold Cup was Desert Orchid, a grey who won the event in 1989. The following year's running was won by Norton's Coin, whose starting price of 100/1 represents the race's longest ever winning price. The entire Cheltenham Festival was cancelled in 2001 because of an
The Thinker (horse) The Thinker (horse) The Thinker (20 April 1978 – 4 April 1991) was an Irish-bred British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse, best known for his win in the 1987 Cheltenham Gold Cup. The Thinker was a chestnut gelding bred in Ireland by Victor Semple. He was sired by Cantab, a successful hurdler who won the Triumph Hurdle in 1961 before becoming a successful National Hunt stallion. His other progeny included Little Polveir, Little Owl (Cheltenham Gold Cup) and Dixton House (National Hunt Handicap Chase). Cantab was a representative of the Byerley Turk sire line, unlike more than 95% of modern thoroughbreds, who descend