The Arc deserved a broadcast that captured the atmosphere of ParisLongchamp. ITV’s remote presentation left far too much of that occasion behind.
The Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe is one of horse racing’s great occasions. Its television coverage should convey the anticipation, atmosphere and international importance of an afternoon at ParisLongchamp.
Instead, ITV1’s decision to anchor its main presentation from Ascot left the programme feeling detached from the event it was supposed to celebrate.
A setting that diminished the occasion
Three presenters gathered around a small, inadequate table, with a floral display across the front that, to my eye, looked better suited to a funeral parlour than one of horse racing’s greatest occasions. The setting conveyed little of the excitement or atmosphere of Arc day.
Ed Chamberlin, Rishi Persad and Adele Mulrennan could discuss the racing, but their surroundings lacked the immediacy of being there. For an occasion of this stature, the presentation looked cheap and felt sterile.
The contrast with Sky Sports Racing’s team on the ground at Longchamp was striking. Switching between the broadcasts made ITV’s shortcomings even more apparent. Sky brought viewers into the occasion; ITV’s Ascot setup felt distant and badly lacking.
Cumani brought the connection with Paris
Francesca Cumani’s trackside reporting supplied much-needed atmosphere. She connected viewers with the horses, people and surroundings that make the Arc special.
Cutting from her reporting in Paris to the quiet UK studio repeatedly emphasised the distance between the principal presentation team and the event. The energy was at Longchamp; the studio arrangement struggled to convey it.
The lost link exposed the weakness
During the broadcast I watched, the live connection to Cumani was lost, leaving the UK team to take over and fill the interruption. It was an awkward passage in a programme that already felt short of the occasion.
Technical failures can happen in any live broadcast, and the cause of this interruption remains unconfirmed. But it exposed how heavily the programme depended on its trackside feed for a sense of being at the event. Once that connection disappeared, the distance between the studio and the racing became impossible to ignore.
ITV should explain what went wrong and whether suitable backup arrangements were available.
Why cover Paris from Ascot?
ITV’s advance announcement confirmed that Chamberlin would be joined in the studio by Persad and Mulrennan, with Cumani trackside at Longchamp. It did not explain the choice of a studio-led presentation.
Was the decision driven by cost, logistics or another constraint? Viewers deserve an answer. At the time of writing, I have not located a public ITV response explaining today’s arrangement or the technical interruption.
There is considerable value in bringing the Arc to a free-to-air audience. The presenters also deserve credit for their knowledge and their ability to keep a live programme moving. But those strengths do not remove the responsibility to give a major international occasion the presentation it deserves.
An explanation — and assurances for next year
The Arc offers horse racing a magnificent shop window. Outstanding horses, international competition and the possibility of sporting history should make it an afternoon to draw viewers into the sport. In my view, ITV’s remote setup fell well short.
The criticism belongs principally with the production decision, rather than with the presenters left to make it work. Cumani supplied the connection with Paris; the studio arrangement repeatedly weakened it.
ITV should explain its choice, address the technical interruption and give viewers clear assurances that next year’s coverage will be improved, with a full presentation team at Longchamp to convey the atmosphere and importance of the occasion.
For an event of this standing, that is a reasonable expectation.
Source: ITV’s advance coverage announcement, 24 September 2026. This article is Ian Wood’s assessment of the broadcast.