Norman Oliver (1927-2012), was an English greyhound trainer. He was 1973 UK Trainer of the Year.

Profile

Oliver became involved in greyhound racing through his father Ted Oliver who was a bookmaker. Norman was attached to Brough Park in

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...

during the entire training career. Oliver's first success was winning the 1962 Midland Flat at

Hall Green Stadium Hall Green Stadium was a greyhound racing stadium located in the Birmingham suburb of Hall Green, which existed from 1927 until 2017. The track itself was a 412-metre long oval track with a sand covered surface. The capacity of the stadium was ...

, with Happy Sailor. The following year he won several events and reached a major final when he steered Super Car through to the 1963

Scottish Greyhound Derby The Scottish Greyhound Derby was an original classic greyhound competition held from 1928 to 2019, at Carntyne Stadium and then Shawfield Stadium. History The competition was introduced at Carntyne Stadium in 1928. It was held until 1968 at ...

. In 1967 he won his first major event when Hi Ho Silver won the Scottish Derby. An

English Greyhound Derby The English Greyhound Derby is the most prestigious race on the British Greyhound racing in the United Kingdom, greyhound racing calendar, with a history stretching back to 1927. It was first held at White City Stadium, but moved to Wimbledon ...

finalist followed in

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

when Shady Begonia reached the final. Shady Begonia also won the BBC Sportsview Television Trophy, the

Regency In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

and reached the

Cesarewitch Cesarewitch may refer to: *Cesarewitch Handicap The Cesarewitch Handicap is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Newmarket over ...

final but it was Ramdeen Stuart that was his star greyhound. Ramdeen Stuart won five major events, including the

St Leger The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over ...

and

Gold Collar Gold collar may refer to * Gold Collar, a prestigious competition in the UK greyhound calendar * Gold-collar worker See also * Livery collar A livery collar or chain of office is a collar (jewelry), collar or heavy Link chain, chain, usually ...

. He trained greyhounds for

Kevin Keegan Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. Nicknamed "King Kev" or "Mighty Mouse", Keegan was recognised for his dribbling ability, as well as his finishing and presence in the air, and is regard ...

Terry McDermott Terence McDermott (born 8 December 1951) is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Nicknamed "Terry Mac", he is best known as a member of the Liverpool team of the 1970s and early 1980s, where he won three Europe ...

, Jonjo O'Neill and

Tommy Stack Tommy Stack (born 15 November 1945 in Moyvane, County Kerry, Ireland) is a former National Hunt racing jockey and trainer. As a jockey, he is probably best known for piloting Red Rum to a third Grand National victory. Stack was National Hunt Cha ...

. He was voted 1973 UK Trainer of the Year. Oliver retired in 2010 and died in 2012 aged 84.

Personal life

He married Dora and had two children Beverly and Denise. He owned racehorses, trained by

Malcolm Jefferson Joseph Malcolm Jefferson (1 December 1946 – 2 February 2018) was a British horse trainer who specialized in training horses competing in National Hunt racing. Jefferson was born in Penrith and worked as travelling head lad to Gordon W. Richar ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oliver, Norman 1927 births 2012 deaths British greyhound racing trainers