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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Sean Ingle at Aintree

‘TikTok effect’ brings sellout crowds and younger fans to Grand National meeting

Packed grandstands at Aintree Racecourse during Ladies' Day of the Grand National meeting
The packed grandstands as runners in the first race pass by during Ladies’ Day at Aintree. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

The Aintree morning was still young, and the temperatures frigid enough for a thick coat, when Hayley Bentley arrived at Ladies’ Day wearing only a bridal dress and veil. “I love racing and got my future husband into it,” she explained. “So what better excuse is there to get dressed up for Ladies’ Day and spend your hen party with 23 of your favourite people?”

Everywhere you looked that sentiment was being echoed and magnified by 55,000 other racegoers, most dressed in their finest suits and silks, who were basking in the first Ladies’ Day sellout since 2012.

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