Rhinestone Cowboy is an Irish bred

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, 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 bas ...

. He was trained in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

by Jonjo O'Neill. In a career which lasted from 2002 until 2007 he ran seventeen times and won ten races including two Grade I hurdle races.

Debut

He made his racecourse debut in February 2002, winning a

National Hunt Flat 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 Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlant ...

race at

Ascot Ascot, Ascott or Askot may refer to: Places Australia * Ascot, Queensland, suburb of Brisbane * Ascot, Queensland (Toowoomba Region), a locality * Ascot Park, South Australia, suburb of Adelaide * Ascot (Ballarat), town near Ballarat in Victoria ...

. His trainer them immediately stepped him up to the top level, where he contested the

Champion Bumper The Champion Bumper is a Grade 1 National Hunt flat race in Great Britain which is open to racing horses aged four to six years. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 m ...

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 Race ...

. Sent off the 5/2 favourite for the race, he finished second, when he was carried left in the closing stages of the race by the eventual winner,

Pizarro Francisco Pizarro, Marquess of the Atabillos (; ; – 26 June 1541) was a Spanish ''conquistador'', best known for his expeditions that led to the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire. Born in Trujillo, Spain, to a poor family, Pizarro chose ...

2002/2003 season

He made his 2002/03 seasonal debut when winning a Listed Class Bumper at Cheltenham in November. He was then sent hurdling, where he went to complete a four - timer over the obstacles, which culminated in a victory in the Kingwell Hurdle as a novice. The reigning

Champion Hurdle The Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt racing, National Hunt Hurdling (horse race), hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to Horse racing, horses aged four years ...

winner, Hors La Loi was back in third place. In his next start, the novice was sent off the 5/2 favourite for the

Champion Hurdle The Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt racing, National Hunt Hurdling (horse race), hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to Horse racing, horses aged four years ...

Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

, where he finished third behind Rooster Booster.

2003/2004 season

The 2003/04 season proved by far to be Rhinestone Cowboy's best season. He started with victory in a handicap Hurdle 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 ...

, before finishing down the field in the

December Festival Hurdle The December Festival Hurdle, currently known by its sponsored title of the Matheson Hurdle, is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Ireland which is open to horses aged four years or older. It i ...

. He then resumed winning ways in the Agfa Hurdle at

Sandown Sandown is a seaside resort and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the south-east coast of the Isle of Wight, England. The neighbouring resort of Shanklin and the settlement of Lake, Isle of Wight, Lake are sited just to the south of t ...

in February, before returning to the

, where he finished third in the

Coral Cup The Coral Cup is a Premier Handicap National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 m ...

. It was in his next two starts that Rhinestone Cowboy showed how good he was. First, he won the Aintree Hurdle, where he overturned the previous season's

Champion Hurdle The Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt racing, National Hunt Hurdling (horse race), hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to Horse racing, horses aged four years ...

form by beating Rooster Booster and Westender.Racing Post
/ref> More Grade 1 success followed 3 weeks later, as he won the

Punchestown Stayers Hurdle The Champion Stayers Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Ireland which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Punchestown over a distance of about 3 miles (4,828 metres), and during i ...

on his first try over 3

miles The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of length; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English f ...

. He had odds on stablemate

Iris's Gift Iris's Gift was a National Hunt racehorse trained in Britain by Jonjo O'Neill (jockey), Jonjo O'Neill. Racing career National Hunt Flat races He made his racecourse debut in August 2001, where he won a National Hunt flat race at Worcester Race ...

back in second that day.

Leg injury

Rhinestone Cowboy suffered a leg injury in November 2004, which all but ended his racing career. He did come back in the 2006/07 season, where he finished down the field in Handicap Hurdles.

Today

The horse has not raced since March 2007 and it is thought that he has now been retired.

References

{{reflist Racehorses bred in Ireland 1996 racehorse births