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Topham Chase
The Topham Chase is a Premier Handicap National Hunt handicap chase in England which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and 5 furlongs (2 miles 5 furlongs and 19 yards, or 4,242 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year in April. From 1989 to 2001 the race was named to commemorate the late clerk of the course John Hughes. In April 2012 the race was won for the third consecutive year by Always Waining, trained by Peter Bowen and ridden by Tom O'Brien. History The inaugural running of the Topham was in 1949. The Topham is now one of three races run over the Grand National fences at the Aintree Festival, the other two races being the Foxhunters' Chase for amateur jockeys and the Grand National itself. The Topham Chase is currently run on the second day of the meeting. Records Most successful horse (3 wins): * Always Waining – ''2010, 2011, 2012'' ---- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aintree Racecourse
Aintree Racecourse is a horse racing, racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England, near to Liverpool. The racecourse is the venue for the Grand National steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase, which takes place annually in April over three days. Aintree also holds meetings in May, October (Sunday), November and December (both Saturdays). The Aintree Racecourse had suffered three major disruptions in post-war history, starting with the 1993 Grand National due to a series of false starts and no winner was announced, followed by the 1997 Grand National, postponed to Monday because of an IRA bomb threat and the 2023 Grand National was delayed due to Animal Rights protesters. History of the course Horse racing was popular in Liverpool from at least Tudor dynasty, Tudor times, In the 18th century Nicholas Blundell organised races on the sands at Crosby, Merseyside, Crosby. In 1829, William Lynn, the owner of the Waterloo Hotel in Ranelagh Street, Liverpool, approached the Second E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barry Geraghty
Barry Geraghty (born 16 September 1979) is a retired Irish jockey. He is the second most successful jockey of all time at the Cheltenham Festival. Geraghty rode his first winner in January 1997 and three years later he became the Irish Champion jump jockey for the first time. His first win in England was the 1998 Midlands Grand National at Uttoxeter on Miss Orchestra for trainer Jessica Harrington. He rode his first Cheltenham winner on the Jessica Harrington-trained Moscow Flyer in the 2002 Arkle Chase. He won the Grand National in 2003 on Monty's Pass. Also that year he won five races at the Cheltenham Festival, including the Queen Mother Champion Chase on Moscow Flyer, and was voted Irish sports personality of the year. In the 2003–04 season he became Champion Irish jump jockey for the second time and won the Stayers' Hurdle at Cheltenham on the Jonjo O'Neill-trained Iris's Gift. Geraghty and Moscow Flyer won their second Champion Chase at the 2005 Cheltenham Festi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toby Balding
Gerald Barnard Balding Jr. OBE (23 September 1936 – 25 September 2014), known as Toby Balding, was a British racehorse trainer, one of the few to have won the "big three" British jump races—the Grand National, Cheltenham Gold Cup and Champion Hurdle. Biography He was born in the United States where his father, Gerald Barnard Balding, Sr., ran a polo team. The family returned to the UK in 1945 and Toby was educated at Marlborough College. His brother, Ian Balding, also a retired trainer, trained Mill Reef to win the Epsom Derby. TV presenter Clare Balding is his niece and trainer Andrew Balding his nephew. He achieved success with both flat and National Hunt horses. He first began training in 1956, aged 19, and his first winners were Bower Chalk at Ascot Racecourse on the flat and The Quiet Man at Wincanton Racecourse over jumps. In 1969, Balding won his first Grand National with Highland Wedding, following up twenty years later with the gelding Little Polveir. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ryan Price (trainer)
Henry Ryan Price (16 August 1912 – 16 August 1986) was a British Thoroughbred horse trainer in both flat and National Hunt racing. Born in Hindhead, Surrey, he was best known by his middle name, Ryan. He began his career in horse racing as a jockey based at East Lavant in West Sussex. In 1937, he relocated to Sutton Bank in Yorkshire where he began working as a trainer. His career was interrupted by service with the British Army, during World War II. Serving with the 7th Battalion of the North Staffordshire Regiment, he was moved to the No. 6 Commando for D-Day. During the 6 June 1944 landing, his Craft LCI(S) No.502 was hit by German shelling as it approached the Normandy beach but he managed to swim to shore and continued with the mission. Discharged with the rank of captain, he resumed his Thoroughbred racing career and eventually settled in Findon, West Sussex where he operated at Downs House, Stable Lane. National Hunt Champion Trainer Between 1954 and 1967, Ryan P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michael Scudamore
Michael Scudamore (17 July 1932 – 7 July 2014) was an English National Hunt racing jockey in the 1950s and 1960s. He rode in 16 consecutive Grand Nationals, with one win on Oxo in 1959. He also rode Linwell, the winner of the 1957 Gold Cup. His riding career ended in 1966, due to serious injuries from a fall on a chance ride on Snakestone at Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ... where he sustained multiple fractures, a collapsed lung and over 90% vision loss in one eye. Scudamore then continued as a trainer. He was the father of Peter Scudamore and the grandfather of Tom Scudamore. References {{DEFAULTSORT:Scudamore, Michael 1932 births 2014 deaths English jockeys British racehorse trainers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Josh Gifford
Josh Gifford (3 August 1941 – 9 February 2012) was a jockey and trainer in National Hunt racing. He was a four-time Champion Jockey, riding 642 winners in his career. He retired from training in 2002, aged 60, and his son Nick Gifford took over training duties. Josh's daughter Kristina Cook (née Gifford) is an Olympic medal winning rider who competes in the horse trials sport of eventing. Biography Gifford was born in Huntingdon. At the age of 28, he turned to training racehorses, with Frank Pullen being his first owner, and later trained Aldaniti, the winner of the 1981 Grand National. He was played by Edward Woodward in the 1983 film '' Champions''. His training stables, which he took over from his former boss, Captain H. Ryan Price, were located in Findon, West Sussex. His daughter, Kristina Cook, won two eventing bronze medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, in both the team and individual events, and a silver medal in the team event at the 2012 London Olympi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peter Cazalet (racehorse Trainer)
Peter Victor Ferdinand Cazalet Deputy lieutenant, DL (15 January 1907 – 29 May 1973) was a British cricketer, jockey, racehorse owner and horse trainer, trainer from Shipbourne, Kent. He played first-class cricket for Kent County Cricket Club and the Marylebone Cricket Club. He served in the Guards Armoured Division during the Second World War, reaching the rank of Major. Post-war, he trained many horses owned by Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and other notable owners. He was British jump racing Champion Trainer on three occasions. Personal life Peter Victor Ferdinand Cazalet was born at Fairlawne, Shipbourne, Kent on 15 January 1907. He was the third son and youngest child of William Marshall Cazalet and Maud Cazalet. His brothers were Edward and Victor Cazalet, Victor; his sister was Thelma Cazalet, Thelma. Edward was killed in action in 1916.; Victor was killed in a plane crash in 1943. He was educated at Eton College, Eton and Christ Church, Oxford. Cazalet was good at r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stan Mellor
Stanley Thomas Edward Mellor (10 April 1937 – 1 August 2020) was a National Hunt jockey and trainer who was the first jockey to ride 1,000 winners and Champion Jockey three years in a row from 1960 to 1962. Riding career Riding style Mellor was an intelligent jockey, rather than a physical one. He once bemoaned the effect this had on public perception of him: "If you win with strength people see it, and if you win with style people see it, but if you win with guile people don't see it." He rode at a weight of 8 st 10 lb, not much more than a modern flat jockey. Victory against Arkle Mellor was one of the few jockeys to experience beating Arkle, often regarded as the greatest steeplechaser of all time. His victory against Arkle came in the 1966 Hennessy Gold Cup on 25-1 outsider Stalbridge Colonist. Because of the handicapping system, Arkle was regularly forced to compete conceding huge amounts of weight to other horses, and his defeat is often attributed to that. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fred Winter
Frederick Thomas Winter, (20 September 1926 – 5 April 2004) was a British National Hunt racing racehorse jockey and trainer. He was British jump racing Champion Jockey four times and British jump racing Champion Trainer eight times. He is the only person to have won the Cheltenham Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle and Grand National as both jockey and trainer. Winter won the Grand National four times, as a jockey in 1957 (Sundew) and 1962 (Kilmore), and as a trainer in 1965 (Jay Trump) and 1966 (Anglo). His most famous victory as a jockey was on Mandarin in the 1962 Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris at Auteuil. His victory despite his illness, a broken bit and Mandarin breaking down in the last half-mile was voted the greatest ride ever in a 2006 Racing Post poll. The race was listed in The Guardian as one of the greatest races ever. As a jockey he rode a then-record 923 National Hunt winners before his retirement in 1964. Honours He was appointed CBE in the 1963 Birthday Honours ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frenchie Nicholson
Herbert Charles Denton "Frenchie" Nicholson (1913 - 1984) was a horse racing jockey and trainer. Nicholson was born in France in 1913, where his father was a huntsman. Nicholson acquired his nickname after having been apprenticed in the French city of Chantilly to Charles Clout, moving to Stanley Wooton's stable in Epsom to continue his training. He was broad and strong, and too heavy to be a flat jockey, so he became a jump jockey instead. He had a major success early on in his career, winning the 1936 Champion Hurdle on Victor Norman. He won the 1942 Cheltenham Gold Cup on Medoc II before the race was suspended for the remainder of the 2nd World War. Nicholson also rode the renowned Irish racehorse, Golden Miller. In 1946-47 he shared the Jockeys' Championship with Fred Rimell. Following the war he worked as a trainer in Cheltenham and was prominent in the training of jockeys both for steeplechase and flat racing. He trained, amongst others, Pat Eddery, Walter Swinburn, Mouse ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dick Francis
Richard Stanley Francis (31 October 1920 – 14 February 2010) was a British steeplechase jockey and crime writer whose novels centre on horse racing in England. After wartime service in the RAF, Francis became a full-time jump-jockey, winning over 350 races and becoming champion jockey of the British National Hunt. He came to further prominence in 1956 as jockey to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, riding her horse Devon Loch which fell when close to winning the Grand National. Francis retired from horseracing and became a journalist and novelist. Many of his novels deal with crime in the horse-racing world, with some of the criminals being outwardly respectable figures. The stories are narrated by the main character, often a jockey, but sometimes a trainer, an owner, a bookmaker or someone in a different profession, peripherally linked to racing. This person always faces great obstacles, often including physical injury. More than forty of these novels became international ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tom Dreaper
Thomas William Dreaper (1898-1975) was an Irish steeplechase racehorse trainer, best known for having been the trainer of Arkle and Flyingbolt. Dreaper was born into a farming family in Donaghmore near Ashbourne on the County Meath-County Dublin border, and educated at St. Andrew's College, Dublin.Fuller, Bryony (1991) ''Tom Dreaper & His Horses'', Punchestown/Marlborough In 1916, he left school to work on the family farm with his father and elder brother. In his twenties he took up riding in point-to-points, with his first win coming in 1923 on Dean Swift, a horse he owned. In 1925 he rode his first winner under Rules. In 1930, his parents bought Greenogue, a 300-acre farm a few miles from Donaghmore, which Tom farmed himself, and in 1931 he took out a licence to train. His serious amateur career came to an end with a fall at Naas 1938, which left him in hospital for eight weeks, unconscious for two of them. Since he viewed himself primarily as a cattle-farmer, his tra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
