When this picture was taken history beckoned, as Istabraq was being prepared for a tilt at a fourth Champion Hurdle, amid a maelstrom of rumours of ill-health. As Paul Wheeler wrote in these pages, he was said to have been "struck down with just about every ailment known to veterinary science . . . with the possible exceptions of galloping gout and Saturday Night Fever."

But with two falls in his previous three outings, people had cause for concern.

Swan was unmoved by allegations that he had schooled badly, "I was delighted with him, " he said.

"We only went slow because the ground was desperate. He jumped the hurdles great and he was very quick at them."

But Swan's faith was sadly misplaced. The horse went off a 2/1 favourite after a flood of sentimental bets, but Swan knew he was struggling to handle the early pace and pulled him up after just two fences.

A massive groan emanated from the stands, before thousands of fans burst into a round of applause.

The Foot and Mouth crisis, which had caused the Cheltenham Festival to be abandoned in 2001, had robbed the bay gelding of a fourth consecutive victory and a place in history.