Cloth Cap ridden by Tom Scudamore Credit: PA The Grand National is back after a one-year hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic. It is the best known steeplechase in the world in which 40 runners tackle the daunting obstacles of Aintree's 30 Grand National fences over the course of four and a half miles. When is Aintree's Grand National 2021? The National is the highlight of Aintree's Grand National meeting which this year runs from Thursday April 8 to Saturday April 10. The main event will be on Saturday as things stand. However, as our racing correspondent Marcus Armytage reports, that date could be put back in the light of the Government announcing its four-stage plan to move out of lockdown: