Best Mate, the triple Cheltenham Gold Cup winner trained by Henrietta Knight at West Lockinge, near Wantage, is to be added to the Cheltenham Hall of Fame.

The ill-fated gelding, who died of a suspected heart attack at Exeter in November 2005, will be inducted at a ceremony before racing begins next Tuesday - the first day of the Festival.

He will be joined in the Hall of Fame by training greats David Nicholson and Martin Pipe, along with National Hunt icon Desert Orchid, the 1989 Gold Cup hero.

The quartet are the first new names to be added to the Prestbury Park charter since its inception in 1998.

They will join 12 existing members, including Golden Miller, Arkle, Michael Dickinson and Vincent O'Brien.

Edward Gillespie, managing director of Cheltenham, said: "We felt that the time was right to add some new names to the list and the four new members of the Hall of Fame all richly deserve their place among the greats.

"Martin Pipe not only redefined the training of jump horses, he also won more races at Cheltenham than any other trainer in history.

"David Nicholson was a giant of jump racing - as a jockey, a trainer and also as a mentor to many of the biggest names in the sport today.

"Desert Orchid's improbable victory in the Cheltenham Gold Cup of 1989 would make any shortlist of the greatest jump races ever.

"And Best Mate's brilliant record at Cheltenham and the extraordinary public reaction to his passing, makes his inclusion a formality."

Nicholson died last year, as did Desert Orchid.

Pipe quit training last year, but has helped his son David successfully take over the reins at the family's Somerset yard.