St. Leger family historical importance was Gen. Anthony St. Leger. He was born in 1731, probably in Kildare, Ireland. He was one of a group of noblemen and gentlemen who in 1778 gathered for a private dinner party in an upper room of the Red Lion Inn, which stands in the market square in Doncaster. A horse race, which was to set the pattern for classic racing throughout the world, had been christened the St. Leger at the suggestion of Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham. The race, a sweepstake for three-year-olds, had been born two years earlier in 1776, at the suggestion
ASW Handicap Chase after a previous chairman of Cheltenham Racecourse who died in 1997, aged 69. ASW Handicap Chase The ASW Handicap Chase was a National Hunt handicap chase in England which was open to horses aged five years and older. It was run at Cheltenham over a distance of 4 miles and 1 furlong (6,637 metres), and was scheduled to take place each year on New Year's Day. The race was first run in 1953 as the Fred Withington Handicap Chase, and was last run in 2004. From 1975 the race was sponsored by Bass and then later by Food Brokers Ltd