Simon Claisse warns of "challenging" weather on day two of Cheltenham

Officials are anticipating “challenging” weather conditions ahead of day two of the Cheltenham festival on Wednesday.

Winds reaching a peak of around 40 miles per hour are forecast to hit the track in the morning, with clerk of the course Simon Claisse keeping a careful eye on developments

He said on the course’s official Twitter feed: “We wanted to give an early insight into conditions for tomorrow as the forecast is looking challenging with strong, gusting winds throughout the day.

“We are continually monitoring the situation and will keep racegoers informed as the conditions present themselves.”

The forecast provides an uncomfortable late reminder of similar conditions which struck on the same day 11 years ago and caused the cancellation of racing.

The Queen Mother Champion Chase and other high-profile races were instead run later in the week, added to the Thursday and Friday cards.