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LONDON (AP) — Victoria Pendleton has been given a ride at the prestigious Cheltenham Festival, barely a year after taking up horse racing following her retirement from cycling.
It was announced Monday that the two-time Olympic gold medalist will ride Pacha Du Polder in the Foxhunter Chase on March 18 — the final day of the festival.
Pendleton says "to be announcing that I have achieved this goal is a truly amazing feeling."
Some commentators and fellow jockeys have warned that it would be too dangerous for a novice jockey like Pendleton to ride at Cheltenham, which is arguably the highest stage in British horse racing.
Pendleton earned her first win as a jockey last week, aboard Pacha Du Polder at Wincanton, having been unseated at Fakenham a week earlier.
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