A Glorious week in the long, hot summer of 2018

Glorious Goodwood 2018 will long be remembered as the one that came along in the middle of a heatwave.
There were highlights every day at the Qatar Goodwood Festival / Picture by Malcolm WellsThere were highlights every day at the Qatar Goodwood Festival / Picture by Malcolm Wells
There were highlights every day at the Qatar Goodwood Festival / Picture by Malcolm Wells

The long, dry spell may have given Goodwood's groundstaff weeks of hard work and headaches before the festival but they coped admirably - helped in no small measure by two or three lots of rain that moistened up the racecourse in the days before the event began.

As for race-goers, they couldn't remember a time when the racing has been blessed by such good weather from start to finish.

And what a week of racing it was.

There were highlights every day at the Qatar Goodwood Festival / Picture by Malcolm WellsThere were highlights every day at the Qatar Goodwood Festival / Picture by Malcolm Wells
There were highlights every day at the Qatar Goodwood Festival / Picture by Malcolm Wells
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From Stradivarius retaining his Goodwood Cup crown on day one to teenage Sussex jockey Jason Watson winning the Stewards' Cup on the final day, it was five days full of heroes, full of highlights.

Many felt Battaash, in winning the five-furlong King George Qatar Stakes by a remarkable four-and-a-half lengths on Friday, was the equine star of the week. He's a Bat-mobile, they said on TV. Superhero status was not unearned.

Everyone will have had their own favourite races - such as those lucky few who backed the aptly-named Feel Glorious at odds of 125/1. But most will agree - it was a great Glorious Goodwood.

If you already have withdrawal symptoms have a look at a few bits of footage from the week I have strung together. The film's not going to win of those Bafta things that ITV Racing like to pick up, but it will hopefully give you a flavour of the week if you were not there, or a reminder of it if you were.

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I am privileged to have a job that allows me to watch and cover racing at Goodwood and last week, for me, reminded me how lucky I am in that respect.

My thanks go to all at the racecourse who help us bring you all the news and views, and the colleagues who help me put it all together, not least photographer Malcolm Wells, who put in more hours on the Downs over the five days than I did.

Until next time...