Willie Mullins has bid an emotional farewell to the horse that gave him his second Cheltenham Festival victory.
The Carlow trainer has confirmed the death of Wither Or Which, who won the Champion Bumper at Prestbury Park in 1996.
The win came one year after Mullins recorded his first victory at the famous meeting when Tourist Attraction won the Supreme Novices' Hurdle in 1995.
Mullins is now the most succesful trainer in Cheltenham history, having tasted victory on 78 occasions, with six of those wins coming this year.
Posting on Twitter, the Closutton handler said: "We had to say goodbye to Wither Or Which today. A special winner of the 1996 Cheltenham Bumper, he was the Irish banker at a time when a lot of good horses were sold to the UK, and was the rock upon which our business was built. At 30 years old, he was a legend around the yard."
Wither Or Which won by 20 lengths on his debut for Mullins at Leopardstown on New Year's Eve before following up at Cheltenham less than three months later, with the trainer himself riding the gelding to both those succeses.
Mullins was crowned champion trainer for the 15th time this year after banking over €5million in prize money.
