Cheltenham Festival weather: Latest forecast ahead of day one

The conditions will be key for punters as the festivals begins

On the eve of Cheltenham Festival, punters will be keen to get a grasp of what conditions await.

The weather could be crucial for tipsters as they assess each day’s schedule, with more than 60,000 fans expected on each of the four days.

According to BBC weather, conditions on the opening day should be good, with the Champion Hurdle (3:30) set to be a must-watch. “A mostly dry and cloudy day tomorrow with just the odd spell of rain,” reads the forecast. “Some bright spells possible in the afternoon. Brisk westerly winds continue through the day. A milder day is expected.”

Looking further ahead, Wednesday and Thursday appear to be good days, with showers set to stay away until Friday.

“Wednesday will be largely dry with sunny spells for most of the day. Largely dry conditions will continue through Thursday, although a few showers may be possible at times during the day. There will be outbreaks of rain or showers pushing eastwards on Friday, followed by drier and brighter conditions later.”

The Cheltenham Festival is set to go ahead (Getty)

The hour-by-hour weather forecast for Cheltenham Festival 2020

(Chance of rain, wind and temperature​)

Tuesday, 10 March - Champion Day

6am – 64 per cent, 15mph South West, 12 degrees

7am – 60 per cent, 15mph West South West, 12 degrees

8am – 50 per cent, 16mph West South West, 12 degrees

9am – 36 per cent, 16mph West South West, 13 degrees

10am – 26 per cent, 17mph West South West, 13 degrees

11am – 18 per cent, 18mph West South West, 13 degrees

Noon – 12 per cent, 18mph West South West. 13 degrees

1pm – 10 per cent, 18mph West South West, 14 degrees

2pm – 10 per cent, 18mph West South West, 14 degrees

3pm – 10 per cent, 18mph West South West, 14 degrees

4pm – 8 per cent, 17mph West South West, 13 degrees

5pm – 7 per cent, 15mph West South West, 12 degrees

6pm – 8 per cent, 13mph West South West, 11 degrees

7pm – 12 per cent, 12mph West South West, 11 degrees

8pm – 17 per cent, 12mph West South West, 10 degrees

9pm – 19 per cent, 11mph West South West, 10 degrees

10pm – 19 per cent, 10mph West South West, 9 degrees

Wednesday, March 11 – Ladies Day

6am – 11 per cent, 8mph West South West, 8 degrees

7am – 8 per cent, 9mph West South West, 8 degrees

8am – 6 per cent, 10mph West South West, 9 degrees

9am – 6 per cent, 12mph West South West, 9 degrees

10am – 6 per cent, 13mph West South West, 10 degrees

11am – 6 per cent, 14mph West South West, 11 degrees

Noon – 5 per cent, 16mph West South West, 12 degrees

1pm – 6 per cent, 16mph West South West, 12 degrees

2pm – 7 per cent, 16mph West South West, 12 degrees

3pm – 7 per cent, 16mph West South West, 12 degrees

4pm – 7 per cent, 15mph West South West, 11 degrees

5pm – 8 per cent, 15mph West South West, 11 degrees

6pm – 7 per cent, 14mph South West, 10 degrees

7pm – 8 per cent, 14mph South West, 10 degrees

8pm – 9 per cent, 14mph South West, 9 degrees

9pm – 11 per cent, 14mph South West, 9 degrees

10pm – 12 per cent, 14mph South West, 9 degrees

Thursday, March 12 – St Patrick’s Day

6am – 11 per cent, 15mph West South West, 5 degrees

7am – 11 per cent, 15mph West South West, 5 degrees

8am – 10 per cent, 16mph West South West, 5 degrees

9am – 11 per cent, 16mph West South West, 6 degrees

10am – 11 per cent, 17mph West South West, 7 degrees

11am – 11 per cent, 18mph West South West, 8 degrees

Noon – 11 per cent, 18mph West South West, 9 degrees

1pm – 13 per cent, 18mph West South West, 9 degrees

2pm – 14 per cent, 18mph West South West, 9 degrees

3pm – 35 per cent, 18mph West South West, 9 degrees

4pm – 15 per cent, 17mph West South West, 9 degrees

5pm – 15 per cent, 16mph West South West, 8 degrees

6pm – 13 per cent, 15mph West South West, 8 degrees

7pm – 12 per cent, 13mph West South West, 7 degrees

8pm – 11 per cent, 14mph West South West, 6 degrees

9pm – 10 per cent, 13mph West South West, 7 degrees

10pm – 10 per cent, 13mph West South West, 6 degrees

Friday, March 13 – Gold Cup

6am – 5 per cent, 10mph West South West, 5 degrees

7am – 4 per cent, 10mph West South West, 5 degrees

8am – 3 per cent, 11mph West, 6 degrees

9am – 4 per cent, 11mph West, 7 degrees

10am – 5 per cent, 12mph West, 8 degrees

11am – 5 per cent, 12mph West, 9 degrees

Noon – 5 per cent, 12mph West, 9 degrees

1pm – 7 per cent, 12mph West, 10 degrees

2pm – 8 per cent, 11mph West, 10 degrees

3pm – 9 per cent, 11mph West, 10 degrees

4pm – 9 per cent, 10mph West South West, 9 degrees

5pm – 10 per cent, 8mph West South West, 9 degrees

6pm – 10 per cent, 7mph West South West, 8 degrees

7pm – 10 per cent, 7mph South West, 7 degrees

8pm – 11 per cent, 6mph South West, 7 degrees

9pm – 12 per cent, 6mph South West, 6 degrees

10pm – 12 per cent, 6mph South West, 5 degrees