[? f. WELT v.1 5.]
1. A heavy-weight horseman or pugilist. Cf. WELTER WEIGHT.
1804. Sporting Mag., XXIII. 293. The high weights, among the Subscribers called the Welters.
1863. E. Farmer, Scrap Book (ed. 3), 61. Leaving ‘Welters’ and ‘Craners’ and ‘slow-uns’ behind.
1869. Contemp. Rev., XI. 365. There is a pleasing representation of the Tedsworth Hunt, who seem from it to be an awful lot of welters.
b. Horse-racing. Used attrib. with the meaning ‘for heavy-weight riders,’ as Welter Cup, Welter Stakes; welter handicap, race. Also ellipt. (= welter race, etc.).
1843. W. Ruff, Guide to Turf, 36. The Welter Stakes of 20 sov. each. Ibid. (1850), 64. The Cheshire Welter Cup.
1880. W. Day, Racehorse in Training, 198. The runners in the welter races have surpassed those in the light-weight handicaps by two.
1897. N. Gould, Seeing him Through, xxv. 239. His eyes caught sight of the the welter handicap for amateur riders. Ibid., 242. There were ten starters for the amateur welter.
2. Something exceptionally big or heavy of its kind. colloq. and dial.
1865. J. Sleigh, Derbysh. Gloss., in Reliquary (Jan. 1866), 171. Welter, a large person.
1888. Sheffield Gloss., Welter, anything large, as a large stone.
1899. Kipling, Stalky, ii. 49. Then he gave us eight cuts apiece—welters.
