Interest In No Offence For Grand National

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30468, 16 June 1964, Page 4

Interest In No Offence For Grand National

(Special Correspondent N.Z.P A.)

LONDON, June 6. Publicity given here to the possibility of New Zealand’s No Offence contesting the 1965 Grand National Steeplechase at Aintree has aroused some interest, and there have been references to the success of Moifaa 60 years ago.

A spokesman said on behalf of Mrs Mirabelle Topham, the managing director of Topham’s, Ltd., the family concern which controls Aintree Racecourse and has been the authority behind the Grand National for more than 100 years, that she would be most interested in, and very pleased at, the possibility of a New Zealand entrant“Her view is that entries from abroad—as, for example, American and Russian—add greatly to the interest of the race,” he said. A representative of the National Hunt organisation said that entries for the 1965 Grand National would close on the first Wednesday in January. Stringent qualifications had to be fulfilled, and unless a horse had previously raced three times under Britain’s. National Hunt rules, it would be automatically handicapped to carry the top weight—precisely the manner

in which the Russian entries were weighted two years ago. A noted bloodstock consultant with whom I discussed the possible New Zealand entry said that acclimatisation was all important. “Any thing that jumps well has a chance—anything can win the Grand National,” he .said. “The question of accli l matisation would be the most important thing with a steeplechaser from New Zealand, in my view.” .