Why was Royal Ascot postponed in 1955?

On May 28, 1955, the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (ASLEF) called a national rail strike, which would not be called off until June 14, when pay rises were awarded. On May 31, following a meeting of the Privy Council at Balmoral Castle, the Queen declared a state of emergency, with emergency regulations coming into force the following day.

As a result of the unrest, Trooping the Colour – which celebrates the ‘official’ birthday of the Sovereign, on the second Saturday in June – was cancelled altogether and, for the first time in living memory, Royal Ascot was postponed until mid-July. The meeting was scheduled for Tuesday to Friday, as usual, but with a different running order, to allow horses that ran in the King Edward VII Stakes or Hardwicke Stakes on the Tuesday to also run in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes on the following Saturday, if so desired.

Unfortunately, one of the consequences of moving the Royal Meeting from its traditional slot in the calendar was that the opening day, July 12, was the hottest day of the year. After two days of extreme heat, described by racegoers as ‘insufferable’, on July 14 Ascot Racecourse was struck by a violent thunderstorm, bringing lightning and torrential local rainfall. Tragedy struck when lightning went to ground through metal rails close to a refreshment tent opposite the Royal Enclosure. Dozens of people were injured, two fatally, and racing was abandoned after the fourth race.

Who is Darryl Holland?

Most recently, Darryl Holland hit the headlines when, in March, 2021, he embarked on a second career as a trainer, based at Harraton Court in Exning, near Newmarket, which he has owned since 2008. However, Holland, 48, remains best known as globetrotting jockey, who rode winners in jurisdictions as far afield as Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Mauritius, South Korea and the United States, as well as in Britain, during a long, illustrious career.

Born in Manchester in June, 1972, Holland began his riding career as apprentice to Barry Hills, riding his first winner, Sinclair Boy, at Warwick in 1990 and becoming Champion Apprentice, with a post-war record 85 winners, the following season. In Britain, he was associated with trainers such as Luca Cumani, Geoffrey Wragg, Mark Johnston and, later in his career, Charles Hills, son of Barry.

Indeed, around the turn of the century, Holland was one of the leading jockeys in the country and enjoyed his most successful season, numerically, in 2004; he rode 157 winners, eventually finishing runner-up to Frankie Dettori in the jockeys’ championship. On home soil, Holland is best known for his association with Falbrav, trained by Luca Cumani, on whom he won the Coral-Eclipse, Juddmonte International and Queen Elizabeth II Stakes in 2003.

How many winners did Hollie Doyle ride in 2021?

In terms of column inches, Hollie Doyle may have been upstaged by the historic achievements of her National Hunt counterpart Rachael Blackmore in recent seasons, but the ‘Pocket Rocket’, as she’s affectionately known, has continued to break records in her own right. Prior to 2019, the record for the most wins in a calendar year for a British female jockey was 106, set by Josephine Gordon in 2017. However, in 2019, Doyle rode 116 winners and, in 2020, broke her own record with 151 winners.

Lo and behold, on October 22, 2021, Doyle surpassed her previous seasonal best on Mustazeed, trained by Chris Wall, at Doncaster and went on to ride 172 winners in the year as a whole, setting yet another new record. In the Flat Jockeys’ Championship, which was decided on winners between May 1, 2021 and October 16, 2021, Doyle rode 87 winners from 592 rides, at a strike rate of 15%, which was good enough for fifth place.

Highlights of 2021 included a 2,521-1 five-timer at Kempton Park on March 3, a first Classic ride on Sherbert Lemon, trained by Archie Watson, in the Oaks at Epsom on June 4 and the second Group 1 win of her career, on Trueshan, trained by Alan King, in the Goodwood Cup on July 27. Doyle also rode Interpretation, trained by Aidan O’Brien, into fourth place in the St. Leger at Doncaster on September 11, making her the first female jockey to finish in the money in a British Classic.

How many times has J.P. McManus won the Champion Hurdle?

Irish billionaire John Patrick McManus, almost invariably known in horse racing circles as ‘J.P.’, is far and away the most successful owner in the history of the Cheltenham Festival, with 66 winners to his name. Nevertheless, even by his own exalted standards, McManus enjoyed a remarkable Festival in 2020.

On Tuesday, March 10, his 69th birthday, he won the Champion Hurdle with Epatante. The following day, a dramatic success for Champ in the RSA Insurance Novices’ Chase initiated a 1,019/1 four-timer for the famous green and gold hooped colours and, even then, McManus was left to rue the ‘one that got away’; Defi Du Seul was sent off 2/5 favourite for the Queen Mother Champion Chase but, inexplicably, was never travelling and trailed in a well-beaten fourth of five finishers. However, McManus added two more winners to his lifetime total later in the week, making seven in all, which was, once again, more than enough to take home the Leading Owner award.

Back to the Champion Hurdle specifically, though, and it should come as no surprise that McManus is the leading owner in the history of the two-mile hurdling championship, win nine wins in all, dating back to 1998. His first three victories came courtesy of Istabraq – the joint second highest rated hurdler of all time, according to Timeform – who completed a hat-trick in 1998, 1999 and 2000; his other winners to date were Binocular (2010), Jezki (2014), Buveur D’Air (2017 and 2018), Espoir D’Allen (2019) and Epatante (2020).

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