Sel Jem (14/1) won the 2026 Le Défi Des Haras Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris at Auteuil on Sunday afternoon.
Ridden by Johnny Charron, who won the French Champion Hurdle yesterday aboard Losange Bleu, among three winners on Saturday, has now completed the Champion Hurdle-Gold Cup double in the one season.
Handled by the training combination of Lageneste and Macaire, the nine-year-old ran out an easy 13-length victor over the 3 mile 5 furlong and 181 yard course.
An incredible comeback story!
SEL JEM wins back his Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris crown in style at Auteuil… pic.twitter.com/H3caLSp6dA
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) May 17, 2026
Run in driving rain and on ground described as Soft to Heavy, 33/1 chance Bon Garcon finished as runner-up, with Gold Tweet a further length and a quarter next in third place.
There wasn’t any Irish representation in the weekend’s feature race at the Parisian racecourse, but the Willie Mullins-trained Selma De Vary won the Grade 1 Prix Alain Du Breil Hurdle for four-year-old half an hour earlier.
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