Meet the Cheltenham Festival superfan with amazing tattoos of his favourite winners

Behind the scenes at Prestbury Park this week, Ollie Smith is part of a huge team making sure everything is going like clockwork.

MELISSA JONES quizzes him with ten questions...

1) Tell us a bit about your role at Cheltenham Racecourse and how long you have worked there for?

I'm a casual racecourse fence attendant and this is my tenth year in the role. Depending on the race meeting we are covering during the season, I'm allocated different parts of the course to keep an eye on. We react to what is happening during the day. It involves things like making sure the jumps are straight for the horses to cross, treading the ground, dolling off an obstacle and helping out if there has been a faller. At the Festival I also manage the gallops when the Irish trainers exercise their horses in the morning.

2) What kit do you have with you on a raceday?

I travel around the track on a buggy. For the opening race, the Supreme Novices' Hurdle, I cover the first flight and when they have passed me I switch to two from the finish. On the vehicle I have screens in case we need to give a horse or jockey privacy, a first aid kit, a defibrillator and stretcher. I carry a radio to contact other members of staff if we are responding to an incident. Waterproofs are essential, as are plenty of snacks, because I work from the early hours of the morning to evening during the four days.

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3) How did you get involved in racing?

I spent nine years working as a logistics driver in the RAF and left in 2016. As a Cheltenham lad living six miles away from the racecourse, the sport is in your blood from day one. I saw a Twitter post which said the racecourse was looking for casual staff and successfully applied. As I have been doing it a while now, I have made many friends in the industry and my racing experience has enhanced to a level I never thought possible.

4) What is your earliest memory of the Festival?

I went to the Cotswold School in Bourton-on-the-Water where many jockeys have been educated, including Sam and Willy Twiston-Davies. My first Gold Cup would have been The Fellow in 1994 when I was ten-years-old. I remember certain teachers would wheel a TV into the room so we could watch it each year. Now my children Mikey, 14 and Zara, 10, are getting into the sport and it's lovely to share my passion with them.

5) What does a typical day for you involve?

On the Tuesday I'll be up at 5.30am for some breakfast and be kitted out an hour later, waiting for the Irish trainers to arrive on the gallops. They exercise their horses on dedicated areas in the centre of the course. I am their go-to person if they need anything and make sure it all goes smoothly. That winds up by about 9.30am. I change my clothes and make sure I have all my kit on the buggy. I like to thoroughly check everything, such as the ground by my jumps and I'm out on the track two hours before the first race at 1.20pm. After the action ends at 5.20pm, we have things to do such as repositioning railings for the next day. I'll usually finish around 8pm.

6) How do you feel working at such a big event?

There's such a big buzz around the place before it all starts. When the tapes go up, you switch on as anything can happen. I always say expect the unexpected. I also work at Stratford and the one time I was down by a hurdle when a horse crashed through the wing and collided with me. I was sent flying and had concussion, but I was lucky it wasn't worse. There's always lots of adrenaline on a raceday and you have to react quickly.

7) What do you most look forward to over the four days?

Greeting the Irish when the first horseboxes arrive on Saturday and being down by the track for the first race of the meeting. Just talking about the Cheltenham roar makes the hairs on my neck stand up.

8) What would be the best result at the Festival in your opinion?

A first Cheltenham Festival winner for the champion jockey Sean Bowen on the Rebecca Curtis-trained Haiti Couleurs in the Gold Cup.

9) What's the hardest part of the job?

Trying to keep everyone safe.

10) Do you have a favourite horse and racecourse outside of Cheltenham?

My all-time favourite is 2008 Gold Cup winner Denman. I have a tattoo of him on my shoulder, plus others of AP McCoy winning the 2010 Grand National on Don't Push It and Many Clouds, which is accompanied by the words 'power, beauty, athleticism and the enduring will to win.' I also love John Barbour as I'm part of Old Gold Racing. Spending time with him at Fergal O'Brien's yard has kept me going through some tough times. Punchestown is a great track, I go to their Festival every year at the end of April.