Imperial Commander (29 March 2001 – 6 April 2017) was a

Cheltenham Gold Cup The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt horse race run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse in England, over a distance of about 3 miles 2½ furlongs ...

winning thoroughbred

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic ...

Racing career

Early career

Imperial Commander's first race was at Summerhill point-to-point in Ireland on 24 April 2005, a race he won by 8 lengths. His next racecourse appearance and first under rules was a

National Hunt flat race National Hunt flat races, informally known as bumper races, are a type of flat racing but run under National Hunt racing rules in Britain and Ireland. National Hunt flat races were created on 15 July 1891 when a conference between the stewards of ...

at Cheltenham on 25 October 2006. This too he won, and already he was being described as a 'future chaser on looks' by the

Racing Post ''Racing Post'' is a British daily horse racing, greyhound racing and sports betting publisher which is published in print and digital formats. It is printed in tabloid format from Monday to Sunday. , it has an average daily circulation of ...

. He garnered one victory over

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, a £2000 race at

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in January 2007, but failed to win at Graded level, including attempts at the 2007 Cheltenham and

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festivals (although he was placed at the latter).

As a steeplechaser

As predicted by the Racing Post, it was as a chaser that his career really took off. He was victorious in his first two chases, both at Cheltenham in late 2007, and he won again in the Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham in November 2008, when he was ridden by Paddy Brennan for the first time. Returning to the Cheltenham Festival in 2009, he won the Ryanair Chase by 2 lengths from Voy Por Ustedes at

odds Odds provide a measure of the likelihood of a particular outcome. They are calculated as the ratio of the number of events that produce that outcome to the number that do not. Odds are commonly used in gambling and statistics. Odds also have ...

of 6/1. The following season he met former Cheltenham Gold Cup champion, Kauto Star, in the 2009

Betfair Chase The Betfair 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 Haydock Park over a distance of about 3 miles and furlongs (3 miles 1 furlong an ...

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, and was beaten by a mere nose. He was less successful in that season's

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where he was below par, trailing in a 64 length 5th to the same horse, after nearly unseating Brennan at the second fence. At Cheltenham the following March, he got his revenge. Again ridden by Paddy Brennan, Imperial Commander won the 2010 Cheltenham Gold Cup, beating favourites and previous champions Kauto Star and Denman. Defending his title in 2011, he hit the fourth-last fence and was soon pulled up. He was found to be

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, and was not seen again on a racecourse for nearly two years. A comeback second in the 2013 Argento Chase at Cheltenham showed he was 'set to remain competitive in top company' and a tilt at the

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 ...

was mooted. Thus, as a 12-year-old, Imperial Commander ran in the

2013 Grand National The 2013 Grand National (officially known as the John Smith's Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 166th annual running of the Grand National horse race at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England. The showpiece steeplechase, which ...

as the top weight, ridden by his trainer's son,

Sam Twiston-Davies Sam Twiston-Davies is a British National Hunt racing jockey. He was the retained jockey of ten-times British jump racing Champion Trainer Paul Nicholls. He won the 2015 Queen Mother Champion Chase on Dodging Bullets. His father is trainer Nig ...

. He went well for a circuit but dropped away quickly soon after and was pulled up.

Pedigree

References

External links

Career 1-2-3 Colour Chart
– ''Imperial Commander'' {{Cheltenham Gold Cup winners 2001 racehorse births Cheltenham Festival winners Cheltenham Gold Cup winners Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 2-a 2017 racehorse deaths