Clare Balding to scale down C4 duties

Clare Balding will present only from the Cheltenham Festival and Royal Ascot for Channel 4 Racing in 2015.

The BAFTA-award winning presenter has agreed a new two-year deal with the channel, but while she will be anchoring the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and continuing her hosting of Crufts for the next two years, her racing coverage has been scaled down to just the nine days of Cheltenham and Ascot, meaning she will miss the Grand National and the Derby at Epsom.

Balding said: "I have been lucky and honoured to work as a racing broadcaster for the past 20 years and will continue to promote the sport on and off screen.

"I look forward to working with the enormously talented Channel 4 Racing team at Cheltenham and Royal Ascot next year and, of course, to the Paralympics in Rio in 2016."

Ed Havard, Channel 4's Head of Live Events said: "Clare is a broadcaster at the very top of her game and I'm delighted that we will be continuing to work with her on our racing coverage and the Rio Paralympics in 2016."

A Channel 4 statement went on to say it would continue to invest heavily in its racing coverage and that the team will welcome a range of expert presenters and guests throughout the next year, including "Frankie Dettori and other top jockeys and racing figures".

Full details of the presenting team and coverage plans for the Crabbie's Grand National Festival are to be announced in early 2015.