Lap of Honour at John Smith's Grand National

11th April 2011

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Troops recently returned from Afghanistan received a standing ovation from tens of thousands of racegoers at the John Smith’s Grand National. A total of 38 serving personnel from all three armed services walked the home straight at Aintree in a Lap of Honour initiative organised by the British Forces Foundation. Following on from a military band it was an emotional precurser to the thrilling big race itself, as tension built in the minutes before the greatest steeplechase in the world. The Tote generously gave a £5 bet to each of the troops for the sweepstake and a £50 bet on the nose for the Charity itself which, to round off an already spectacular day, was placed on the winner Ballabriggs. Aintree Racecourse marketing manager Emma Owen said: “The appearance of servicemen and women, newly returned from Aghanistan, raised huge cheers from our crowds on Grand National Day as we all showed our support. It added an exciting new dimension to the festival – as well as heightening emotions around the course.” Members of the Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Marines have previously carried out Laps of Honour at major sporting events including an England Euro 2008 qualifier Wembley, The Cheltenham Festival and polo’s Cartier International. With around 600 million viewers worldwide, the Grand National was televised to serving forces in Afghanistan.  Although Lap of Honour footage was on the big screens, with a full commentary from the racecourse PA system, it was disappointing that The British Broadcasting Corporation shied away from showing live pictures of the crowd’s support for the Armed Forces.  This decision was in stark contrast to theprecedent set by Channel 4 Racing’s extensive coverage when Lap of Honour launched The Cheltenham Festival in 2009. British Forces Foundation’s Director Mark Cann said: “I cannot think of a bigger stop for the Lap of Honour campaign than the John Smith’s Grand National.  We are enormously grateful to the officials and stewards of the course for their support in ensuring this campaign continues to go from strength to strength.” Lap of Honour is an ongoing project by the BFF to provide a contemporary and informal way of bringing the Armed Forces and British public together. It enables people to demonstrate support for their Armed Forces and in turn the servicemen and women to show what support, on such a large scale, means to them.  The positive effect this has on morale is evident not just to those directly involved but also to the troops deployed on operations all over the world.