Nicky Henderson


Book Description

National Hunt Champion trainer Nicky Henderson OBE shares behind-the-scenes stories of the dozen most extraordinary thoroughbreds that have defined his glittering career. After his early days as an amateur jockey and assistant to Fred Winter, Nicky started his own training yard, which would become the home of such great riders as Sir AP McCoy, Barry Geraghty, John Francome, Mick Fitzgerald, Sam Waley-Cohen, Richard Dunwoody, Nico de Boinville and many others. From his triple Champion Hurdle-winner See You Then, Remittance Man and Nobby the sheep, record-setting Altior, Sprinter Sacre and the greatest comeback in jump racing history, to his new star Constitution Hill, the Henderson yard has been a breeding ground for success. Through exclusive interviews with Nicky and his jockeys, Nicky Henderson: My Life in 12 Horses schools us on life, sport, magic, courage, loss, hope and love. National Hunt Champion trainer Nicky Henderson OBE has collaborated with journalist Kate Johnson to write the story of his life through 12 of his most brilliant racehorses. Kate learned to ride aged six, once rode in a charity race at Cheltenham and has her own ex-racehorse. This is her first book.




Tales From the Turf


Book Description

Britain and Ireland's Top 100 Racehorses of All Time author Robin Oakley takes us on a canter through the colourful world of horseracing. Join him as he shares evocative personal stories of being there at racing legends' key moments, such as Frankie Dettori riding seven winners in a day at Ascot. He debates whether jockeys are sportsmen or masochists – jump jockeys can expect a fall on average every 13 rides – and reminisces about unusual achievements, including trainer Sirrell Griffith's Cheltenham Gold Cup win after milking his 100 cows that morning. Tales From the Turf is an extraordinary account from the Spectator's long-running Turf columnist, and a man for whom horseracing is a lifetime's passion.




Sixty Years of Jump Racing


Book Description

Robin Oakley brings alive the colourful world of those who ride and train jumping horses. With elegant production and gripping images, Sixty Years of Jump Racing chronicles the social and economic changes which have brought the sport's ups and downs-like the development of sponsorships and syndicate ownership, the near loss of the Grand National, the growing domination of the Cheltenham Festival and the growth of all-weather racing to meet the bookies' demands for betting shop fodder. Pace and colour is provided by stories of the horses who have been taken to the heart of racing crowds, like the Irish-trained hurdler Istabraq and Best Mate, the three-times winner of the Cheltenham Gold Cup for England. Famous rivalries and memorable races are re-lived and key victories revisited in portraits of and interviews with the owners, jockeys and trainers who have dominated the sport. The emphasis will be largely on the past fifty years-from Arkle to Tony McCoy-but a significant introduction by Edward Gillespie encapsulates the past history of what was previously known as 'National Hunt Racing' and sets the stories in context.




Hamilton Accies 25 Year Roller Coaster Ride


Book Description

In association with Accies Trust. Foreward by Alison Walker In Accies 25 year rollercoaster, Ian Kelly has produced a season by season fan's diary through the 25 years of Accies, on and off the pitch, from 1985 to 2010. This encompasses the final nine seasons at Douglas Park, through the seven homeless years, and the contrasting first nine seasons at New Douglas Park. For fans and watchers of the game, the book offers valuable insights into how football in general has changed through this period in terms of television, internet and supporters trusts. Ian has been an Accies supporter since the mid 70s. He has seen Accies play games on 52 league grounds, in all four divisions of the Scottish League, as well as one awful day in Buckie! Ian, who is a qualified accountant, has been Treasurer of the Accies Trust since 2005, and is very much an Accies stats man. He is thankful for the Trust's support with this publication.







Winner: My Racing Life


Book Description

Fully updated with a new chapter on A.P.'s knighthood, the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement award and his new role as a TV pundit When Tony 'A.P.' McCoy announced his retirement from racing, the shockwaves reverberated across the world of sport. With more than 4,300 winners to his name, McCoy seemed to be at the peak of his powers when he suddenly brought down the curtain on an extraordinary career. But then A.P. McCoy has always done things his way. In Winner: My Racing Life, AP reflects upon his unparalleled career, taking the reader from his humble beginnings in County Antrim to the emotional day at Sandown when horse racing bade a tearful farewell to arguably its greatest ever star. McCoy relates in forensic detail the process that led to his decision to retire, recalls some of his greatest rides, lifts the lid on his family life and looks ahead to a future no longer driven by the constant pursuit of victory. The result is a remarkable insight into the private and public life of a true winner.




Britain and Ireland's Top 100 Racehorses of All Time


Book Description

Kauto Star, Nijinsky, Arkle, Desert Orchid, Frankel, Red Rum ... how do you rank the best British and Irish horses from both Flat racing and jumping? How do you compare a fleet-footed sprinter with the robust staying power of a steeplechaser? Robin Oakley's highly personal list will provoke debate among racing fans everywhere. A lifelong devotee of racing and well known as the Turf correspondent for the Spectator, former BBC Political Editor Robin Oakley has made his selection not just on statistics but on the 'fun factor', giving prominence to horses who seized the public's imagination. He brings the legendary names of past and present vividly to life with a wealth of fascinating stories behind their victories. Illuminated by archive photographs that illustrate the athleticism, character and courage of the horses, Britain and Ireland's Top 100 Racehorses of All Time is the perfect gift for any fan of racing and its colourful history.




Courses for Horses


Book Description

SHORTLISTED FOR BEST SPORTS WRITING AT THE 2024 SPORTS BOOK AWARDS In parks, on downlands and heaths, by motorways, overlooking firths: the racecourses of Britain and Ireland are as various as the people you meet there. Some - Newmarket, Epsom, the Curragh - are rich in history, and among the most celebrated sporting venues in the world; others - Fakenham, Bangor-on-Dee, Perth - offer more modest but no less enjoyable spectacles. Journeying round these courses, Nicholas Clee meets the people who bring them to life: from those in the spotlight, including a Grand National-winning jockey, Derby-winning owner and top TV commentator; to many others with key roles in the sport - bookmakers, form experts, racecourse managers and more. From them, he learns about the bravery, dedication, skill and expertise that make racing one of our most popular spectator sports. Whether basking in sunshine or sheltering from a hurricane, sampling a variety of pies or recoiling from the world's worst curry, losing his money with the bookies or at the Tote windows, Clee soaks up the atmosphere, delves into racing business, and marvels at the uniqueness of each course and its people. Written with a keen eye, gentle humour and a deep love for the sport, Courses for Horses take us behind the scenes at that grand outing: a day at the races.




The Jumping Game


Book Description

As the woman who trained the great Best Mate to win three consecutive Cheltenham Gold Cups, no one could be better qualified than Henrietta Knight to discover what makes today's top jumps trainers succeed. From eccentric, outspoken Yorkshireman Mick Easterby, to elegant, aristocratic Venetia Williams, from Irish wizard, Willie Mullins, to perfectionist champion trainer, Paul Nicholls and young pretender, Dan Skelton, here is a dazzling cast of extraordinary characters, all with their quirks and foibles, but with one single-minded ambition – finding first-class horses and training them to win big races. Henrietta shares their dramatic journeys, methods and secrets of working in a tough, competitive industry. For the trainers, every win reignites the thrill of the sport and a craving for success that never dies. Their stories are fascinating, each one illustrated with unique photographs from private albums.




Boy from Nowhere


Book Description

Born in Hearne, Saskatchewan, in 1932, Allan Fotheringham has had a distinguished career. Dubbed "Dr. Foth," Fotheringham graduated from the University of British Columbia and has worked for numerous news organizations, including the Vancouver Sun, Southam News, The Financial Post, Sun Media, the Globe and Mail, and most notably as a long-time columnist for Maclean's. His career has taken him to many places on almost every continent as a correspondent and allowed him to meet many renowned personalities, from Robert F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, and Brian Mulroney to The Beatles, Pierre Trudeau, and Nelson Mandela. For ten years he was a panellist on the popular CBC-TV show Front Page Challenge, and he's won many awards, including the National Magazine Award for Humour, a National Newspaper Award for Column Writing, and the Bruce Hutchinson Life Achievement Award. Time once described Allan Fotheringham as "Canada's most consistently controversial newspaper columnist ... a tangier critic of complacency has rarely appeared in a Canadian newspaper."