A TRAINER and his entire yard have been left devastated after the death of their beloved Cheltenham Festival horse.
Grade 2 Scottish Champion Hurdle winner Cracking Rhapsody has sadly been put to sleep.
What a finish! 🤩
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 12, 2025
Cracking Rhapsody wins the @Coral Scottish Champion Hurdle for @EWhillansRacing and Craig Nichol 🏆 @ayrracecourse pic.twitter.com/LCBKCmiC50
The Ewan Whillans-trained fan favourite was most recently a brilliant fourth in the County Hurdle at 50-1.
The seven-year-old gelding, who had won more than £230,000 in his 21-race career, had not long had an operation after his brave run.
Whillans explained on X that complications suffered as a result of the procedure sadly led to his death.
He wrote: “The hardest day I’ve had or will probably ever have as a trainer yesterday.
“An operation to pin Cracking Rhapsody’s pastern was initially successful and the vets were happy.
“However, complications came after and after another CT scan yesterday we decided that the best thing for him was to put him to sleep.
“The vets did everything they could but it wouldn’t be fair to see the horse suffer.
“We are all beside ourselves.
“A horse that has given us so much.
“And a horse I owe so much to. We’re simply heartbroken.”
Cracking Rhapsody won seven races over the course of his career.
The Scottish Champion Hurdle, which he claimed under jockey Craig Nichol in 2025, was the highlight.
He clung on to win by a neck at 10-1 from this Dan Skelton’s Kabral Du Mathan, who at one stage looked the likely Stayers’ Hurdle winner this year.
His most valuable wins though were his back-to-back successes in the Morebattle Hurdle at Kelso.
Cracking Rhapsody, who was owned by John and Sheila Wright, bagged the £62,000 first-place prize in 2024 and 2025 at odds of 9-1 and 12-1 respectively.
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