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Pat Eddery
Patrick James John Eddery OBE (18 March 1952 – 10 November 2015) was an Irish flat racing jockey and trainer. He rode three winners of the Derby and was Champion Jockey on eleven occasions. He rode the winners of 4,632 British flat races, a figure exceeded only by Sir Gordon Richards.
Eddery was born in Newbridge, County Kildare, near the Curragh Racecourse. His mother, Josephine Eddery, was the daughter of jockey Jack Moylan; his father, Jimmy Eddery, was twice Irish champion jockey and won the 1955 Irish Derby on Panaslipper. Josephine and Jimmy had thirteen children - six daughters and seven sons, the eldest of whom died in infancy. Eddery was the fifth of the twelve surviving children. Several of his brothers became jockeys. Eddery attended the Patrician Brothers' Primary School in Newbridge and, when the family later moved to Blackrock, the Oatlands Primary School in Stillorgan. He learnt to ride as a very small child and was riding racehorses by the time he was nine. Taking little interest in school, he dreamed of winning the Derby.
Eddery began his career as an apprentice jockey in Ireland with the stable of Seamus McGrath. His first ride was at the Curragh in August 1967 where he finished last of the seven runners. Later that year he moved to England where he was apprenticed to Frenchie Nicholson and recorded his first success on Alvaro, trained by at Epsom Downs Racecourse on 24 April 1969 after riding more than one whole season without a single winner. The same horse was to give Eddery six wins in succession during the 1969 season. While still riding as an apprentice he won the Wokingham Handicap and the Timeform Gold Cup in 1969, the Northumberland Plate in 1970 and the Goodwood Stakes in 1971, a year in which he won the title of Champion Apprentice Jockey with 71 wins. In 1972, riding as retained jockey for Newmarket trainer Geoffrey Barling, Eddery had his first ride in the Epsom Derby and came third on outsider Pentland Firth. He was awarded the 1972 Ascot Gold Cup after the disqualification of first-past-the-post Rock Roi. Later that season, he became first jockey to the Lambourn yard of trainer Peter Walwyn.
The association between Eddery and Walwyn lasted eight years. In 1973, Eddery achieved 119 wins, and was leading jockey at Royal Ascot with five winners, including three for Walwyn. In 1974, he secured his first win in a British Classic, riding Polygamy for Walwyn in the Epsom Oaks, and was British Champion Jockey. Aged 22, he was the youngest British flat racing champion since World War II. He went on to win three more consecutive titles while riding for Walwyn. In 1975, he had his first Derby win, riding Grundy (horse) for Walwyn. That season, Grundy also provided Eddery with victories in the Irish 2,000 Guineas, the Irish Derby and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. His win against Bustino, ridden by Joe Mercer, in the latter race has been described as "the race of the century". Eddery spent the winters during the 1970s riding in Hong Kong for trainer John Brown.
Walwyn's yard was affected by the equine virus for two seasons from 1978, and Eddery's seasonal tally of winners dropped. In 1980, he accepted the offer of a lucrative retainer from Irish trainer Vincent O'Brien at Ballydoyle. For five years, Eddery would fly to Ireland for racing on Saturday, then return to his home in Oxford,race in France on Sunday, and in England from Monday to Friday. In Ireland he rode for trainer John Oxx, as well as O'Brien. In 1981, he won the Irish 2,000 Guineas on Kings Lake for O'Brien in a controversial race where the winner was demoted by the stewards and then restored to first place after a successful appeal by the trainer.. The following year, he was Irish champion flat racing jockey for the only time and won the Derby on Golden Fleece for O'Brien and owner Robert Sangster. Further Classic success followed for the team with Lomond in the 1983 2,000 Guineas, El Gran Senor in the 1984 2,000 Guineas and the 1984 Irish Derby, and Leading Counsel in the 1985 Irish St. Leger, while another of O'Brien's owners, Stavros Niarchos provided Eddery with a win in the 1985 Irish Derby on Law Society. El Gran Senor was beaten a short head by Secreto in the 1984 Derby, which Eddery described as the greatest disappointment of his racing career..
Eddery had won his first Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in 1980 on Detroit, trained by Oliver Douieb and owned by Robert Sangster. In 1985, he rode Rainbow Quest, trained by Jeremy Tree, in the Juddmonte colours of Khalid Abdullah. Narrowly beaten by the previous year's winner, Sagace, they were awarded the race after a stewards enquiry. Early in the 1986 season, Abdullah approached Eddery with the offer of a retainer. Eddery accepted the offer, tempted by the money and the quality of Abdullah's horses, at a time when O'Brien's winners were in decline. It meant that, without the weekly visits to Ireland, he would be able to spend more time in England with his family and attempt to win the British champion jockey title again. He took over from Greville Starkey as the rider of Abdullah's Dancing Brave, trained by Guy Harwood. He partnered Dancing Brave to victory in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Other major winners in the Juddmonte colours included Zafonic, Quest for Fame and Toulon.
Eddery also rode a number of major winners outside Europe including Pebbles in the 1985 Breeders' Cup Turf and Jupiter Island in the 1986 Japan Cup. joined forces with Lester Piggott, Joe Mercer and French champion Freddie Head and Yves Saint-Martin in a group of riders to take part in a series of chenge races under the 'Ritz Club Challenge Trophy' at Singapore and other Asian cities starting in 1983 for several years. For several years, from 1983, he was part of a team which included Lester Piggott, Joe Mercer, Greville Starkey, Willie Carson, and French jockeys Freddie Head and Yves Saint-Martin. The team made trips to South Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong, Cyprus and the US to take part in a series of challenge races. Between 1986 and 1996, he secured a further seven British Champion jockey titles (1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1996). In 1987, he lost the title to Steve Cauthen by just two wins; the jockeys would have finished level on 196 winners had it not been for an objection by the rider of the third horse in the deciding race. The following year, he regained the title with 183 winners from just over 480 rides - a strike rate of over 38 per cent. In 1990, he rode 209 winners. It was his highest total and the first time a jockey had ridden more than 200 winners in a season since Gordon Richards in 1952. That year, he received the inaugural Lester Award for Flat Jockey of the Year, which he again won in 1991 and 1996, sharing it on the latter occasion with Frankie Dettori. He also received two Flat Jockey Special Recognition awards in 2002 and 2003.
Following the end of his association with Abdullah in 1994, Eddery rode as a freelance until his retirement in 2003. In 1997, he rode his 4,000th winner when Silver Patriarch, trained by John Dunlop won the St Leger. A back injury then side-lined him for six months. After Royal Ascot 2003, Eddery announced his decision to retire at the end of the season. He had ridden a total of 73 winners at the meeting and had five times been leading jockey. His last day of race riding was at Doncaster on 8 November 2003. He rode no winners that day, but was presented with a trophy for lifetime achievement. Over the course of his career, he had ridden 4,632 winners in Britain, second only to Gordon Richard, and won fourteen British Classic races. Internationally, he had ridden over 6,000 winners. From 1974 to 1999, Eddery's booking agent was his brother-in-law Terry Ellis, who also acted as his driver.
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Pat Eddery
Patrick James John Eddery OBE (18 March 1952 – 10 November 2015) was an Irish flat racing jockey and trainer. He rode three winners of the Derby and was Champion Jockey on eleven occasions. He rode the winners of 4,632 British flat races, a figure exceeded only by Sir Gordon Richards.
Eddery was born in Newbridge, County Kildare, near the Curragh Racecourse. His mother, Josephine Eddery, was the daughter of jockey Jack Moylan; his father, Jimmy Eddery, was twice Irish champion jockey and won the 1955 Irish Derby on Panaslipper. Josephine and Jimmy had thirteen children - six daughters and seven sons, the eldest of whom died in infancy. Eddery was the fifth of the twelve surviving children. Several of his brothers became jockeys. Eddery attended the Patrician Brothers' Primary School in Newbridge and, when the family later moved to Blackrock, the Oatlands Primary School in Stillorgan. He learnt to ride as a very small child and was riding racehorses by the time he was nine. Taking little interest in school, he dreamed of winning the Derby.
Eddery began his career as an apprentice jockey in Ireland with the stable of Seamus McGrath. His first ride was at the Curragh in August 1967 where he finished last of the seven runners. Later that year he moved to England where he was apprenticed to Frenchie Nicholson and recorded his first success on Alvaro, trained by at Epsom Downs Racecourse on 24 April 1969 after riding more than one whole season without a single winner. The same horse was to give Eddery six wins in succession during the 1969 season. While still riding as an apprentice he won the Wokingham Handicap and the Timeform Gold Cup in 1969, the Northumberland Plate in 1970 and the Goodwood Stakes in 1971, a year in which he won the title of Champion Apprentice Jockey with 71 wins. In 1972, riding as retained jockey for Newmarket trainer Geoffrey Barling, Eddery had his first ride in the Epsom Derby and came third on outsider Pentland Firth. He was awarded the 1972 Ascot Gold Cup after the disqualification of first-past-the-post Rock Roi. Later that season, he became first jockey to the Lambourn yard of trainer Peter Walwyn.
The association between Eddery and Walwyn lasted eight years. In 1973, Eddery achieved 119 wins, and was leading jockey at Royal Ascot with five winners, including three for Walwyn. In 1974, he secured his first win in a British Classic, riding Polygamy for Walwyn in the Epsom Oaks, and was British Champion Jockey. Aged 22, he was the youngest British flat racing champion since World War II. He went on to win three more consecutive titles while riding for Walwyn. In 1975, he had his first Derby win, riding Grundy (horse) for Walwyn. That season, Grundy also provided Eddery with victories in the Irish 2,000 Guineas, the Irish Derby and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. His win against Bustino, ridden by Joe Mercer, in the latter race has been described as "the race of the century". Eddery spent the winters during the 1970s riding in Hong Kong for trainer John Brown.
Walwyn's yard was affected by the equine virus for two seasons from 1978, and Eddery's seasonal tally of winners dropped. In 1980, he accepted the offer of a lucrative retainer from Irish trainer Vincent O'Brien at Ballydoyle. For five years, Eddery would fly to Ireland for racing on Saturday, then return to his home in Oxford,race in France on Sunday, and in England from Monday to Friday. In Ireland he rode for trainer John Oxx, as well as O'Brien. In 1981, he won the Irish 2,000 Guineas on Kings Lake for O'Brien in a controversial race where the winner was demoted by the stewards and then restored to first place after a successful appeal by the trainer.. The following year, he was Irish champion flat racing jockey for the only time and won the Derby on Golden Fleece for O'Brien and owner Robert Sangster. Further Classic success followed for the team with Lomond in the 1983 2,000 Guineas, El Gran Senor in the 1984 2,000 Guineas and the 1984 Irish Derby, and Leading Counsel in the 1985 Irish St. Leger, while another of O'Brien's owners, Stavros Niarchos provided Eddery with a win in the 1985 Irish Derby on Law Society. El Gran Senor was beaten a short head by Secreto in the 1984 Derby, which Eddery described as the greatest disappointment of his racing career..
Eddery had won his first Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in 1980 on Detroit, trained by Oliver Douieb and owned by Robert Sangster. In 1985, he rode Rainbow Quest, trained by Jeremy Tree, in the Juddmonte colours of Khalid Abdullah. Narrowly beaten by the previous year's winner, Sagace, they were awarded the race after a stewards enquiry. Early in the 1986 season, Abdullah approached Eddery with the offer of a retainer. Eddery accepted the offer, tempted by the money and the quality of Abdullah's horses, at a time when O'Brien's winners were in decline. It meant that, without the weekly visits to Ireland, he would be able to spend more time in England with his family and attempt to win the British champion jockey title again. He took over from Greville Starkey as the rider of Abdullah's Dancing Brave, trained by Guy Harwood. He partnered Dancing Brave to victory in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Other major winners in the Juddmonte colours included Zafonic, Quest for Fame and Toulon.
Eddery also rode a number of major winners outside Europe including Pebbles in the 1985 Breeders' Cup Turf and Jupiter Island in the 1986 Japan Cup. joined forces with Lester Piggott, Joe Mercer and French champion Freddie Head and Yves Saint-Martin in a group of riders to take part in a series of chenge races under the 'Ritz Club Challenge Trophy' at Singapore and other Asian cities starting in 1983 for several years. For several years, from 1983, he was part of a team which included Lester Piggott, Joe Mercer, Greville Starkey, Willie Carson, and French jockeys Freddie Head and Yves Saint-Martin. The team made trips to South Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong, Cyprus and the US to take part in a series of challenge races. Between 1986 and 1996, he secured a further seven British Champion jockey titles (1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1996). In 1987, he lost the title to Steve Cauthen by just two wins; the jockeys would have finished level on 196 winners had it not been for an objection by the rider of the third horse in the deciding race. The following year, he regained the title with 183 winners from just over 480 rides - a strike rate of over 38 per cent. In 1990, he rode 209 winners. It was his highest total and the first time a jockey had ridden more than 200 winners in a season since Gordon Richards in 1952. That year, he received the inaugural Lester Award for Flat Jockey of the Year, which he again won in 1991 and 1996, sharing it on the latter occasion with Frankie Dettori. He also received two Flat Jockey Special Recognition awards in 2002 and 2003.
Following the end of his association with Abdullah in 1994, Eddery rode as a freelance until his retirement in 2003. In 1997, he rode his 4,000th winner when Silver Patriarch, trained by John Dunlop won the St Leger. A back injury then side-lined him for six months. After Royal Ascot 2003, Eddery announced his decision to retire at the end of the season. He had ridden a total of 73 winners at the meeting and had five times been leading jockey. His last day of race riding was at Doncaster on 8 November 2003. He rode no winners that day, but was presented with a trophy for lifetime achievement. Over the course of his career, he had ridden 4,632 winners in Britain, second only to Gordon Richard, and won fourteen British Classic races. Internationally, he had ridden over 6,000 winners. From 1974 to 1999, Eddery's booking agent was his brother-in-law Terry Ellis, who also acted as his driver.
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