"(won 3 times (1973, 1974, 1977), runner up twice (1975, 1976)); Mr Frisk (1990) (the last winner to date to be ridden by an amateur jockey and still holds the record for the fastest time); Aldaniti (1981) (ridden by Bob Champion shortly after he had recovered from cancer. His story was made into a film); and Foinavon (1967) (won at odds of 100/1 after a mêlée at the 23rd fence resulted in the majority of the field falling or refusing. Foinavon was far enough behind at that point to avoid the confusion and ran on to win by 20 lengths."
"in a fall at the third fence and was euthanised. However, the most dramatic moment of the race, and perhaps of Grand National history, came when a loose horse — Popham Down, who had been hampered and unseated his rider at the first fence — veered dramatically to his right at the 23rd fence, slamming into Rutherfords, unseating its jockey Johnny Leech. A pile-up ensued. Rondetto, Norther, Kirtle Lad, Princeful, Leedsy and other horses hit the ground, then began running up and down the fence preventing others from jumping and bringing the whole race effectively to a halt. Some even"
"National at Aintree and the American Grand National. Thirty-six horses ran in the race, including the previous year's winner Royal Mail, who was pulled-up before the second Canal Turn with a broken blood vessel. Winning rider Bruce Hobbs later explained that he had Fred Rimell to thank in part for his victory. Hobbs stated that Battleship had landed very steeply at Becher's Brook and cut his chin on the ground, causing the pair to come to the seventh fence wrong. Battleship had to veer sharply to take the jump and as Hobbs stated. ""He caught me off balance and I"
"year when the Triple Crown series was split three ways. The Belmont Stakes race was held at Aqueduct Racetrack from 1963 to 1967, while the track at Belmont was restored and renovated. The largest crowd of the 20th century was in 1971 with over 80,000 people, supplemented by the city's Latino community, there to cheer on their new hero, Cañonero II, the Venezuelan colt who had won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and was poised to win the U.S. Triple Crown. However, due to a foot infection that had bothered the horse for several days, Cañonero II failed to"
"National. Thirteen ran, with the previous year's winner Jealousy being withdrawn on the morning of the race. The Huntsman came to the final fence with only one other horse in with a chance of beating him, Bridegroom, ridden by Richard Sherrard. The Huntsman had more to offer than his rival and went on up the run in to become the first French trained winner of the race. Five horses completed the course although the third placed Romeo had refused at the third last fence while fifth placed Bucephalus had been virtually brought down in the early stages and finished tailed"
"a crowd of 30,000, the largest for a ""wartime"" Derby and was attended by the King and Queen. Court Martial, regarded as a doubtful stayer on pedigree grounds, was sent off at odds of 100/9 with twenty-five other colts in opposition. Ridden by Nevett, Dante was towards the rear of the field in the early stages but accelerated past the opposition in the final quarter mile and won by two lengths from Midas, who beat Court Martial by a head for second place. Dante was the first Northern horse to win the Derby since Pretender in 1869, and his victory"
"Foinavon defended his title in the 1968 Grand National but was brought down at the 16th fence, the water jump. His jockey that year was Phil Harvey; Buckingham had a broken arm. A similar incident occurred in 2001 when Red Marauder won the race from Smarty after they were left clear following a pile up at the Canal Turn on the first circuit, and after the other remaining horses fell or were brought down by the 20th fence. It was also reminiscent of the 1928 Grand National, when Tipperary Tim was the only horse to finish the race without being"
"belief in his chances that he was not even at the course. For the first circuit and a half, Foinavon played no real part in the proceedings, in which 28 of the 44 starters had safely survived past the 22nd fence (Becher's Brook). However, a loose horse — Popham Down, who had been hampered and unseated his rider at the first fence — veered suddenly to his right at the 23rd fence, slamming into Rutherfords and unseating his jockey Johnny Leech. A pile-up ensued. Rondetto, Norther, Kirtle Lad, Princeful, Leedsy and other horses hit the ground, then began running up"
"of 8/1 in a thirteen-runner field. Silver Fame and Greenogue returned after fighting out the finish in 1951 but the 7/2 favourite was Freebooter the winner of the 1950 Grand National. The other runners included the improving six-year-old E.S.B. and the Vincent O'Brien-trained Knock Hard. Greenogue went to the front and maintained his advantage until the final turn by which point Knock Hard, Mont Tremblant, E.S.B. and Shaef were his closest pursuers. Freebooter had already fallen, whilst Fred Winter on Shaef was holding on to his horse's head after his bridle became dislodged on the first circuit. Knock Hard fell"
"racing. Irish-trained Oscar Time and Welsh-trained Teaforthree led the field, with Auroras Encore emerging in third position. At the final fence, Paul Carberry pulled up Chicago Grey while Mumbles Head refused and two other horses unseated their riders. At the elbow on the 494-yard run-in, Auroras Encore had extended his lead over Teaforthree and Oscar Time, the latter fading and quickly overtaken by Cappa Bleu. At the line, the pairing of Auroras Encore and Ryan Mania – taking his first ride in the Grand National – won by a distance of nine lengths, Cappa Bleu pipped Teaforthree for second place,"
"the race, but he unexpectedly remained in the leading pack for most of the race, before pulling out in front over the final fences. Ballabriggs finished ahead of Sam Waley-Cohen's Oscar Time in second, and Tony McCoy's Don't Push It in third. Dehydrated in the unusually hot weather, Ballabriggs immediately returned to the stable after the win, instead of going to the winners enclosure as tradition dictates. It was the first time only the jockey entered the winner's enclosure without his mount. Following his Grand National win Maguire received a five-day ban for excessive use of the whip, Ballabriggs having"
"fence, but Foinavon was able to maintain this lead over the run-in. Red Alligator, who went on to win in 1968, was a distant third. The incident is frequently replayed on Grand National day. The commentary of Michael O'Hehir has also been widely reported on. After the race, O'Hehir suggested that with obstacles like Becher's Brook and Valentine's Brook, the 23rd might one day be named after Foinavon. In 1984, the Aintree executive officially named the 7th/23rd fence (the smallest on the course at 4 ft 6 in) the ""Foinavon fence"". Irish commentator O'Hehir was primarily a Gaelic football commentator"
"became highly agitated, delaying the start by several minutes. Once the race was underway, Templeman had Grand Parade in a prominent position from the start and turned into the straight in second place behind Paper Money Halfway down the straight, Grand Parade overtook Paper Money and stayed on strongly in an ""exciting"" finish to hold off the challenge of Buchan by half a length, with Paper Money third. The tactics of Buchan's jockey were questionable, as he switched his mount to the inside at a crucial stage, but Grand Parade's win appeared to be decisive. Indeed, according to ""Robin Goodfellow"""
"stated the odds-on favourite while the other seven runners included Memoir, Gouverneur (runner-up in the Derby), Le Nord and Alloway. Surefoot misbehaved as usual before and after the race, rearing up and ""scattering the crowd in all directions"". In the race he settled behind the leaders before moving up on the outside in the straight. A furlong out Common and Gouverneur were locked together and fighting out the finish when Liddiard unleashed Surefoot who produced a powerful late run. The older horse gained the advantage in the final strides and won by half a length and a short head from"
"By the end of the first circuit only six horses remained in the field. By the final fence just two remained. Billy Barton fell at the last, leaving the 100/1 outsider Tipperary Tim to finish alone. Billy Barton was, however, remounted to pick up the second-place prize money. In the 2001 Grand National the riderless Paddy's Return ran in front of the field as they approached the fence. This caused a number of horses to be stopped in their tracks or brought down. In total nine horses in the field were taken out of the race at the Canal Turn,"
"refused. Naunton Brook was now in the lead as the field took the 90-degree Canal Turn with Bewley's Berry, Ballycassidy and The Outlier next. Only Tom Doyle was caught out by the sharp turn and was ejected from Knowhere out the side, while right behind them Kandjar D'allier was baulked by two loose horses and crashed into the fence, almost bringing down Homer Wells in the process. Of the thirty-one remaining only Royal Auclair failed to negotiate the four fences along the canal side that took the field back onto the race course for the first time, falling at the"
"Whitley Chase at Haydock. In his last gallop before the National, he was back in fine form. Red Rum was given the top weight for Aintree, but it had dropped to 11 stone 8 lb. A large portion of the 42-strong field was eliminated from the race on the first circuit: 19 had fallen or unseated their riders before the second circuit, including seven at the first fence. Going onto the second round, Boom Docker held a significant lead (the biggest going onto the second circuit in Grand National history) but he refused to jump the 17th fence. It was"
"crammed the racetrack, most backing Seabiscuit. Pollard found his horse blocked almost from the start. Picking his way through the field, Seabiscuit briefly led. As they thundered down the back straight, Seabiscuit became trapped in third place, behind leader Whichcee and Wedding Call on the outside. Trusting in his horse's acceleration, Pollard steered between the leaders and burst into the lead, taking the firm ground just off the rail. As Seabiscuit showed his old surge, Wedding Call and Whichcee faltered, and Pollard drove his horse on, taking ""The Hundred Grander"" by a length and a half from the fast-closing Kayak"
"Seeandem and Brown Trix in the 1989 Grand National, all at Becher's Brook, Aintree bowed to pressure from animal rights groups and undertook extensive modifications to the fence. Further changes were made after two horses, Ornais and Dooneys Gate, died during the 2011 Grand National, the latter at Becher's. The incident involving Dooneys Gate resulted in the fence being jumped only once for the first time in the race's history; it was bypassed on the outside on the second circuit while veterinary staff attended to him. The fence took its name from Captain Martin Becher, who fell there from his"
"approximately halfway between the first to second and second to third jumps. The second became known as The Fan, after a mare who refused the obstacle three years in succession. The name fell out of favour with the relocation of the fences. Height: ; fronted by a ditch The first big test in the race as horses are still adapting to the obstacles. Height: A testing obstacle that often leads to falls and unseated riders. In 2011 the 20th became the first fence in Grand National history to be bypassed on the final lap, following an equine fatality. Height: A"
"the third American-based horse, along with Battleship and Jay Trump, to win the Grand National. Ben Nevis II retired after his victory with earnings of US$124,199. He lived the remainder of his life on Fenwick's farm back in Maryland, where he died in 1995 at the age of 27. Ben Nevis II was inducted into the America's National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame in 2009. Forster's third and final Grand National winner was Last Suspect, who was owned by the Duchess of Westminster. She had also owned Foinavon (winner of the 1967 Grand National and Arkle (winner of the"
"of nine minutes, 1.9 seconds (a record which would stand until 1990). The third horse, L'Escargot, who would win the National two years later, was 25 lengths adrift at the finish. There was one equine fatality during the race when Grey Sombrero fell at The Chair whilst leading the pursuit of Crisp. He suffered a broken leg and was euthanised, becoming the first fatal casualty of the Grand National since Racoon in 1970. Grey Sombrero is one of three horses to have been fatally injured while jumping The Chair in the Grand National (the others were Land Lark in 1975"
"of safety changes in the months leading up to the race, following the deaths of two horses in the previous year's National. The changes included reducing the severity of some of the fences, raising the minimum age of participating horses from six to seven years old, and requiring all runners to have previously been placed in a recognised steeplechase of at least three miles. Neptune Collonges, ridden by Daryl Jacob, won the race, beating Sunnyhillboy in a photo finish and the closest ever finish to a Grand National. Neptune Collonges became only the third grey horse to win the 173-year-old"
"the fence and continued over a fence behind the rest of the remaining runners. Only 13 horses remained after the Turn, going onto the racecourse proper for the first time. At the 13th, Noble Lord fell, leaving only 12 to tackle The Chair, the large standside jump. This year it claimed three horses including joint-favourite Edmond, each-way shot Supreme Charm and largely unfancied Moondigua. Listen Timmy made a major mistake, recovered, but was pulled up immediately after the fence. No Retreat, who was completely tailed off at the time was eventually pulled up by jockey Jason Maguire before the start"
"in the ""Daily Mail"", Grand Parade's only problem came when he attempted to jump over a road which crossed the course. Grand Parade reappeared in mid-June at Royal Ascot when he was brought back in distance to one mile for the St. James's Palace Stakes in which he was matched against Glanmerin, the horse who had beaten him in his only defeat. On what proved to be his final racecourse appearance Grand Parade reversed the form to win by three quarters of a length, although on this occasion it was Glanmerin who appeared to have been given a poor ride."
"9/1 joint-favourite with Red Rum to win the National. However, by the time the runners had reached The Chair, Crisp, who was carrying the top weight of 12 stone (a weight that is now forbidden in the National), had already built up a significant lead and appeared unstoppable. For much of the initial stages, his closest challenger was Bill Shoemark on Grey Sombrero, but that horse fell (fatally) at The Chair, gifting Crisp an even greater lead which had grown to 20 lengths by the end of the first circuit. Jockey Pitman later recalled that at the Becher's Brook fence"
"Grand National (Thalassius, Archimedes, Brick and Daisy) but only Daisy and Thalassius actually ran and neither was placed. The winner was The Lamb, trained by Ben Land snr. for Lord Poulett. 1869 started badly when his horse Reporter cut his foot badly on a stone – the wound turned septic and Reporter died a week later of 'lockjaw' (tetanus). Only one of his horses started the 1869 Grand National, Guy of Warwick, and he disgraced himself by refusing at the second fence and exiting the course. The rest of the year was very quiet as well and Green was realising"
"One of the smallest on the course, it was named in 1984 after the 1967 winner who avoided a mêlée at the fence to go on and win the race at outside odds of 100/1. Height: Noted for its sharp 90-degree left turn immediately after landing. Before the First World War it was not uncommon for loose horses to continue straight ahead after the jump and end up in the Leeds and Liverpool Canal itself. There was once a ditch before the fence but this was filled in after a mêlée in the 1928 race. It was bypassed for the"
"fall at the third fence. Schindlers Hunt's jockey Paddy Flood broke his collarbone in the fall; the other jockeys were unhurt. Coral bookmakers took the decision to refund bets placed on race-day for King John's Castle. The horse was bidding to become the first grey to win the National since 1961, but refused to run when the race started. Although under betting rules customers bets should have been classified as losers, Coral took the decision to make a goodwill refund gesture to their customers. Selected quotes from the jockeys including winner at the fifteenth attempt, Tony McCoy, 17-year-old Sam Twiston-Davies"
"of the winner were interviewed, the race was analysed in a slow motion re run using camera shots not broadcast during the race itself. Former Grand National jockeys, Richard Pitman and Bill Smith. Both Pitman and Smith made heavy reference throughout toward the loose horse Lucky Rew who continued riderless after a first fence fall for the duration of the race by repeatedly stating that the horse would not do it if it didn't like it. This was viewed by elements in the press as an attempt to deflect attention from the fall of Dark Ivy, which received only scant"
"1960 Grand National The 1960 Grand National was the 114th renewal of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 26 March 1960. The steeplechase was won by nine-year-old Merryman II, who, at odds of 13/2, became the first clear favourite to win for 33 years. His jockey, 22-year-old Gerry Scott, had been lucky to take part in the race, having broken his collarbone two weeks prior. The top weight was officially reduced to a maximum of 12 stone from 12 stone 7 lbs, though it had been over a decade since any"
"only seven horses emerged with seated jockeys. By the penultimate fence this number had reduced to three, with Great Span looking most likely to win ahead of Billy Barton and Tipperary Tim. Great Span's saddle then slipped, leaving Billy Barton in the lead until he too then fell. Although Billy Barton's jockey Tommy Cullinan managed to remount and complete the race, it was Tipperary Tim who came in first at outside odds of 100/1. With only two riders completing the course, this remains a record for the lowest number of finishers. Although the Grand National was run as normal in"
"through railings into a crowd of photographers. His jockey Richard Johnson was still lying prone by the time the field had races round the course, so officials made the decision to bypass the fence. However, the signs were unclear, so Andrew Lynch on Sizing Europe and Barry Geraghty on Finian’s Rainbow were unsure of whether to jump it or not until very close to the fence. Both horses had to change course sharply, and some onlookers felt that Sizing Europe lost the most momentum, although Finian’s Rainbow proved the result was no fluke with a win in the Grade 1"