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Nicky Henderson reported his stable star Constitution Hill to be ‘bright and well’ this morning following yesterday’s below-par racecourse gallop at Kempton

The flagship horse of the Cheltenham Festival scoped poorly after a disappointing racecourse gallop at Kempton yesterday morning, leaving Henderson and the rest of the racing world shocked.

Although Henderson and connections face a battle against the clock in order to get last year's Champion Hurdle winner ready to defend his crown in two weeks, the Seven Barrows handler did offer an upbeat bulletin on Wednesday.

In a statement released on X, formerly known as Twitter, Henderson said: "I am pleased to say that Constitution Hill appears perfectly normal this morning. He is bright and well and ate everything last night. His temperature has remained normal both last night and this morning.

"As with all the other horses that galloped at Kempton yesterday, they are having an easy day today. They have had a lead out and all appear to be sound and well and are having a good pick of grass.

"We would plan to ride them all, including Constitution Hill, tomorrow, although he will have quieter exercise for the next 48 hours at least as we still have to bear in mind that he has got a hopefully relatively mild lung infection which has to improve considerably before any serious work could begin again.

"Fresh air is as important as anything for a horse's lungs. The intention is to rescope on Friday to monitor which way this is going."