Aidan Coleman (born 17 August 1988) is an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

National Hunt In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

jockey, who has ridden multiple Grade 1 winners in the United Kingdom including at the Cheltenham Festival.

Career

Coleman was born in Cork, Ireland and moved to England in 2006 working for trainer Henrietta Knight. His first ride was in December of the same year, finishing 9th at Hereford riding Silverbar. His first victory came the following year onboard Tashkandi at

Uttoxeter Uttoxeter ( , ) is a market town in the East Staffordshire district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is near to the Derbyshire county border. It is situated from Burton upon Trent, from Stafford, from Stoke-on-Trent, from ...

. Coleman would switch to being the retained jockey with

Venetia Williams Venetia Williams (born 10 May 1960) is an English racehorse trainer specialising in National Hunt racing. She is based at stables at Aramstone in Herefordshire, England. Williams was born at Scorrier House, Cornwall and began as a racehorse tr ...

, and won the 2008/09 champion conditional jockey championship with 55 winners. In April he rode in his first

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handica ...

, onboard

Mon Mome Mon Mome is an AQPS racehorse, which won the 2009 John Smith's Grand National at Aintree Racecourse, run on April 4, 2009. It was ridden by Liam Treadwell and trained by Venetia Williams. He won by 12-lengths at odds of 100–1, making Mon Mom ...

, becoming one of the youngest ever jockeys in the race aged 19. He was one of the youngest riders ever to start the Grand National. The following year, he opted not to ride Mon Mome in the National, instead

Liam Treadwell Liam Treadwell (3 January 198623 June 2020) was an English National Hunt jockey, who won over 300 races between 2009 and 2019. He won the 2009 Grand National on Mon Mome at odds of 100/1, and also won the United House Gold Cup, Byrne Group ...

steered the horse to victory at Aintree. After success with Williams, in 2015, Coleman joined the new Bloomfields racing operation in Newmarket with John Ferguson. It was a brief but successful phase of Coleman's career. Bloomfields lasted just one season, with the horses auctioned by

Tattersalls Tattersalls (formerly Tattersall's) is the main auctioneer of race horses in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Founding It was founded in 1766 by Richard Tattersall (1724–1795), who had been stud groom to the second Duke of Kingston. T ...

in April 2016. Coleman secured his first Group 1 success with

Paisley Park Paisley Park Records was an American record label founded by musician Prince in 1985, which was distributed by and funded in part by Warner Bros. Records. It was started in 1985, following the success of the film and album '' Purple Rain''. ...

, a horse trained by Emma Lavelle that took him to victory in the JLT Hurdle,

Stayers' Hurdle The Stayers' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain. It is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 3 mile ...

at the

Cheltenham Festival The Cheltenham Festival is a horse racing-based meeting in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, with race prize money second only to the Grand National. The four-day festival takes place annually in March at Cheltenham Ra ...

and two

Long Walk Hurdle The Long Walk Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of about 3 miles and 1 furlong (3 ...

's. In June 2019, Coleman reached the 1,000 career winners mark. Put The Kettle on became another successful horse for Coleman, winning both the

Arkle Challenge Trophy The Arkle Challenge Trophy is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham, England, over a dis ...

and

Queen Mother Champion Chase The Queen Mother Champion Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. As part of a sponsorship agreement with the onl ...

at Cheltenham. Coleman has also had success with

Epatante Epatante (foaled 27 February 2014) is a French-bred AQPS racehorse best known for her performances in Hurdle races. After winning two of her three races in her native country, she was transferred to race in England and showed further promise b ...

and Jonbon, winning Grade 1 races at

Aintree Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, north-east of Liverpool city centre, in North West England. It ...

for owner

JP McManus John Patrick McManus (born 10 March 1951) is an Irish businessman and racehorse owner. His career lasted from the 1980s to the 2010s. He was one of the biggest shareholders of Manchester United, until his stake was bought out by Malcolm Glazer ...

. Whilst Coleman rides a number of the Irish owners horses, he is not officially the number one jockey for the billionaire. In 2022, it was announced Coleman would no longer be the retained jockey by trainer Olly Murphy, who he had been attached to since 2020.

Major wins

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

Aintree Hurdle The Aintree Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and 4 furlongs (), ...

- (1) - ''

(2022) '' *

Celebration Chase The Celebration Chase is a Grade One National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of about 1 mile 7½ furlongs (1 mile, 7 f ...

- (1) - '' Jonbon (2023) '' *

Fighting Fifth Hurdle The Fighting Fifth Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Newcastle over a distance of about 2 miles and half a ...

- (2)- ''

(2020, 2021 (2021 a

dead heat A dead heat is a rare situation in various racing sports in which the performances of competitors are judged to be so close that no difference between them can be resolved. The result is declared a tie and the competitors are awarded a joint ra ...

)) '' *

Henry VIII Novices' Chase The Henry VIII Novices' Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of about 2 miles ( ...

- '' Jonbon (2022) '' *

- (3) - ''

(2018, 2020, 2022)'' *

Top Novices' Hurdle The Top Novices' Hurdle is a Grade One National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and half a f ...

- (1) - ''Jonbon (2022)'' *

Maghull Novices' Chase The Maghull Novices' Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles (1 mile ...

- (1) - '' Jonbon (2023) ''

Cheltenham Festival winners (3)

- (1) - ''Put The Kettle On (2021)'' *

- (1) -''

(2019)'' *

- (1) -''Put the Kettle On (2020)''

Personal life

Coleman lives in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. His brother is the Irish National Hunt jockey, Kevin Coleman, who won the 2007 Galway Plate. Between 2009 and 2011, Coleman was sponsored by horse racing television channel Racing UK. He also appeared on the channel as a presenter. For the 2022-23 season, Coleman is sponsored by Kalooki Sportsbook.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coleman, Aidan 1988 births Living people Irish jockeys Lester Award winners Equestrians from County Cork