Thomas Skelton (21 November 1856? – 27 November 1900) was a
jockey
A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...
who rode the winner of the 1886
Grand National
The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England. First run in 1839, it ...
aboard Old Joe. In his first four attempts to win the race, he placed third, then first, second and fourth, before being unplaced on two subsequent attempts. The
silks Skelton wore to victory in 1886 are today in the possession of
Aintree Racecourse and are occasionally displayed in the weighing room bar on Grand National day.
Skelton's biography is a matter of some debate. It is most commonly believed among racing historians that Skelton was born in
Lichfield
Lichfield () is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated south-east of the county town of Stafford, north-east of Walsall, north-west of ...
on 21 November 1856 and apprenticed to Tom Stevens at
Chilton, Oxfordshire, then in
Berkshire
Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...
. Described by contemporaries as 'a good flat jockey', he also rode under
National Hunt rules where he achieved his greatest success. He was very light and in the words of one authority "although always thought of as a somewhat delicate man to be engaged in the hazardous trade of jump jockey, his determination and flair had long been acknowledged". Tommy Skelton also rode winners of the
Grand Sefton Steeplechase and the
Lancashire Steeplechase before losing an eye in a shooting accident near
Newmarket in 1890, which effectively ended his riding career.
From 1884 he also trained racehorses for over ten years, mostly near Newmarket but also at
Headbourne Worthy and
Hednesford. He then took an inn at
Kidderminster. Skelton was arranging to return to live at Newmarket, but died while visiting friends at
Kentford close to that town on 27 November 1900.
[Chas Hammond. Jump Jockeys 1830-1950. p38.]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skelton, Tommy
1856 births
1900 deaths
British jockeys
Sportspeople from Lichfield