Dual Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Galopin Des Champs has been retired by trainer Willie Mullins.
A remarkable campaigner over six seasons, the Audrey Turley-owned star lit up the Cheltenham Festival on two memorable occasions. He landed the Gold Cup in back-to-back seasons in 2023 and 2024, the former providing Mullins and Townend with their third victories in the race.
Those two Gold Cup wins were among 15 career successes in 26 National Hunt starts. 12 of those came at the highest level, six of which arrived at his beloved Leopardstown. At that home course, he won three Irish Gold Cup and two Savills Chases, while he also landed a Punchestown Gold Cup for good measure in 2025.
IN his retirement statement, Mullins said, via The Sun, that: “We took a collective decision to retire Galopin Des Champs at his age because we felt he could not do himself justice at the level he was used to.
“He retires a good, sound horse who will hopefully have a good second career as a sport horse.”
Galloping Galopin a marvellous sight when on song
Few horses brought an air of inevitability to the highest level like Galopin Des Champs at his best.
He was a slow burner though. Winless in his first three starts as a novice hurdler, Mullins had a plan for the then five-year-old. Thrown in off a mark of 142, he hacked up in the Martin Pipe at Cheltenham in 2021, beating no less than Langer Dan into second. A first Grade 1 triumph followed at Punchestown, since when he rarely looked back.
There was no shortage of drama at times. After two magnificent performances in his first two chases, he met a showdown with Bob Olinger in the 2022 Turners Novices’ Chase. He swanned 12 lengths clear under Paul Townend only to crumple on landing and fall. It was the only time he failed to complete over fences.
He made amends 12 months later in the Gold Cup, repeated the trick 12 months later, then went out on his sword when second in the 2025 Gold Cup behind Inothewayurthinkin. Although no longer the force of previous seasons, he had time to add a Punchestown Gold Cup immediately afterwards despite a relatively modest record at that meeting.
The ten-year-old retires a Cheltenham and National Hunt legend. He leaves Mullins’ team in rude health, and with Closutton having found his successor after Gaelic Warrior landed this year’s Gold Cup.