Horse Racing - Cheltenham Festival - Cheltenham Racecourse, Cheltenham, Britain - March 14, 2023 Constitution Hill ridden by Nico de Boinville in action on their way to winning the 15:30 The Unibet Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy REUTERS/Paul Childs
(Reuters) - Favourite Constitution Hill romped to victory in the Champion Hurdle on the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival on Tuesday.
The six-year-old, ridden by Nico de Boinville, lived up to his billing as a potential great of national hunt racing, by leaving a high-quality field scrapping for second.
His victory, by a huge nine lengths, was a record-extending ninth Champion Hurdle victory for trainer Nicky Henderson.
Irish Champion Hurdle winner State Man was second past the post with 66-1 shot Zanahiyr third.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel)
