Meriel Patricia Tufnell MBE (1948–2002) was the first female jockey in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
to win a race under
Jockey Club
The Jockey Club is the largest commercial horse racing organisation in the United Kingdom. It owns 15 of Britain's famous racecourses, including Aintree Racecourse, Aintree, Cheltenham Racecourse, Cheltenham, Epsom Downs Racecourse, Epsom ...
rules.
Biography
She was born in
Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
on 12 December 1948 into a prominent
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...
family. Her grandmother, Sybil Tufnell, was the first woman in the UK to run a firm of estate agents, and her father was a naval captain who served in the
Far East
The Far East is the geographical region that encompasses the easternmost portion of the Asian continent, including North Asia, North, East Asia, East and Southeast Asia. South Asia is sometimes also included in the definition of the term. In mod ...
and
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
.
Born with dislocated hips and later suffering childhood asthma, she overcame these disabilities to ride in gymkhanas and then
BSJA
British Showjumping is the Great Britain governing body for the equestrian sport of showjumping. It provides the competitors for Team GBR in international competition and sets the rules under which affiliated competitions are held. It is one of ...
showjumping.
She rode her mother's novice mare, Scorched Earth, to victory in the Goya Stakes at Kempton Park on 6 May 1972, the first ever ladies' flat race held under Jockey Club rules. Neither horse nor jockey had raced previously. The race was the first in a twelve race series for female jockeys, and with three winners from seven rides, Tufnell was the series champion.
She continued to ride competitively until 1974, including in the first mixed race, at
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...
, in March 1974, and founded the Lady Jockeys' Association of Great Britain, the first such body in the world, after a meeting at
Haydock
Haydock is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, in Merseyside, England. At the 2011 Census, it had a population of 11,416 Haydock's historic area covers the Haydock electoral ward and a section of the Blackbrook ward.
Haydo ...
.
She was appointed MBE in the
1976 Birthday Honours
The Queen's Birthday Honours 1976 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were published on 4 June 1976 for ...
, a year after retiring from race riding. She opened an equestrian yard and became an instructor, and later went on to train point-to-pointers and hunter chasers with her husband, trainer Glenn Humphrey, whom she married in 1983. The couple separated in 1994.
In 2002, she died of
cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
at the age of 53 having raised several thousand pounds for Sparks, a children's cancer
charity
Charity may refer to:
Common meanings
* Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons
* Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sha ...