Virtual Grand National to run before real event in 2021

The Virtual Grand National (VGN) – which proved a popular replacement for the real thing when it was cancelled due to COVID-19 12 months ago – is set to be televised again on ITV in April.

While former jockey Bob Champion is looking forward to ‘riding’ in the Race Of Champions – which will again be part of the programme – 40 years on from his famous win aboard Aldaniti.

Full details on the Liverpool Echo website.

Virtual Grand National raises £2.6m for NHS Charities

Saturday’s Virtual Grand National, which ran on ITV, has raised £2.6 million for NHS Charities.

The race, which was produced by Rob McLoughlin’s Carm Productions, attracted 4.3 million viewers, a 28% audience share. The bookmakers are set to donate £2.6 million to NHS Charities Together, the umbrella organisation which represents more than 140 NHS charities.

Read more on the Prolific North website.

Potters Corner wins the Virtual Grand National 2020

This year’s Virtual Grand National replaced the real thing and was broadcast on ITV on Saturday, 4 April.

The result was a win for Potters Corner, which bookies had given odds of 18-1. The race was a huge success, with major coverage on national media and even some of the jockies – who would have taken part in the real thing – commenting on social media as the race was run.

The Virtual Grand National was produced by Carm Productions, run by Rob McLoughlin.

For more on the race results, visit the BBC Sports website.

Virtual Grand National to replace the real thing

With this year’s Aintree Grand National cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Virtual Grand National has galloped to the rescue to replace it.

This computer-version of the famous race is produced by Carm Productions and is created using advanced computer graphics and sophisticated algorithms to predict the outcome based on data about the runners.

The Virtual Grand National has been run each year since 2017 alongside the real thing and has a consistently good record of predicting the winners. This year’s virtual race features Aintree legends Red Rum and Tiger Roll against the other competitors.

Carm executive producer Rob McLoughlin grew up in Maghull, near Aintree. This is a project close to his heart.  “We use the latest CGI technology and algorithms and were ready to go ahead as a forerunner to the big race, but now we want to cheer the nation up and ask the computer if history could have been made.”

The Virtual Grand National will be broadcast by ITV at 5.00pm on April 4, 2020. More details and how to watch the race, visit the ITV website here.

Rob McLoughlin’s Virtual Grand National 2019

The Virtual Grand National is back on ITV4 on Friday evening, 5 April, ahead of the live race the following day.

Last year’s correctly predicted the winner, Tiger Roll; a stunning achievement for the new virtual reality race. This will be the third year that the virtual reality race has attempted to predict the winner.

The Virtual Grand National is on ITV4 at 8pm on Friday, April 5, the Randox Health Grand National at Aintree Racecourse will be televised on ITV1 and the ITV Hub, with coverage starting at 1pm. The programme is produced by Carm Productions.

Read the full story at The Liverpool Echo site.