Toughest fence in racing is changed ahead of Cheltenham Festival

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The Arkle Trophy, the second race on the opening day of the Festival, will be the first time that the obstacle on the Old Course has been jumped since the autumn meeting.

Taking a tumble: Papini (left) and Tramantano crash out after jumping Cheltenham's notorious second-last fence in November

Attempts have been made to make the fence more inviting to jump by placing two sight boards on the take-off side.

It is hoped that these will help runners make a more measured leap. The fence was tested by jockey Denis O'Regan when he was schooling cross country chase entrants Theatre Knight and Canada Street two weeks ago and received his approval.

The second-last has gained a reputation for being tricky. Runners approach it at speed and, while jumping it well, can buckle on landing. Meanwhile, Nicky Henderson, the most successful current trainer at the Festival with 32 wins, intends to run a powerful team of 21 this year.

Among them are Gold Award (Bumper) and Barbers Shop (Jewson Novices' Handicap Chase), who will bid to give the Queen her first Festival winners.

Henderson is sure that Supreme Novices' Hurdle entry Khyber Kim will bounce back from a disappointing run at Doncaster last time.