Sporting Advent Calendar #5: Hurricane Fly wins fourth Irish Champion hurdle

If National Hunt racing's stolid weather-beaten face doesn't normally do sentiment it fairly gorged on the stuff when that hardy perennial Hurricane Fly secured himself a singularly sunny spot in the record books at Leopardstown in January.

Long acclaimed as the world record holder in terms of Grade 1 victories, 'The Fly's' BHP Irish Champion Hurdle victory was a 22nd and final top-flight victory for a star who was later retired during the summer, acclaimed by his trainer Willie Mullins as the "horse of a generation."

A pair of Champion Hurdle victories at Cheltenham feature among Hurricane Fly’s final Grade 1 tally but it was around Leopardstown where he always looked most comfortable and showed the sort of form which made him undisputedly on the of the finest hurdlers ever seen in Ireland.

So when the veteran hero overcame his old rival Jezki to make it a record five-in-a-row in this country’s most coveted hurdles prize - and a perfect unbeaten career 10-out-of-10 around the Dublin track - what the 8,216 crowd lacked in quantity they made up for in the quality of raucous appreciation.

Renowned as a rather ‘lairy’ character, Hurricane Fly duly played ball too, allowing fans reach out to pat him and posing for batteries of cameras.

A racing public which had been in thrall to another great champion in Istsabraq a dozen years previously had taken time to warm to Hurricane Fly. But the modern champion had eclipsed the old horse’s tally of four in the race and finally worn down any sceptics by his sustained and durable quality.

The ‘feel-good’ factor at the old champ securing one final hurrah on his home turf might have been as gooey as the soft ground on the track but it was a lot more intoxicating.