The Waterloo Cup is the Blue Riband event on the hare coursing calendar. Run at Great Altcar in Lancashire, England since 1836, it is seen as the ultimate test of a greyhound. The three day competition, which attracts tens of thousands of spectators, sees sixty four of the finest coursing greyhounds from Great Britain and Ireland to contest the historic prize.
The 2005 event, held on February 14, 15 and 16th, was eventually won by a dog called Shashi. Shashi was bred by Ernest Smith, and owned by him with Albert Shackcloth and Michael Darnell. Trained at Malton, North Yorkshire, by the Teals, the winner managed to beat Hardy Admiral, owned by Diana Williams, in the final.
With the introduction of a ban on hunting with dogs, speculation that 2005 would see the final running of The Waterloo Cup was rife. However, it would seem, loopholes in the law will, most probably, enable the event to continue to be held. This will please the sport's supporters whilst, in all likelehood, infuriating those who oppose it.
