Nicolai "Nico" W. Chastel de Boinville (born 14 August 1989) [1] is an English horse racing jockey who competes in National Hunt racing. [2] De Boinville has ridden more Grade One winners than any British jumps jockey currently active. [3]
He is the son of an insurance broker, de Boinville was educated at Bradfield College from 2002 to 2007, a public school in the village of Bradfield in Berkshire, followed by the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. He had initially intended to study Politics at Newcastle, but he left during his first year, in order to pursue a career in horse racing. [4] [5]
De Boinville started his racing career as a stable lad at Nicky Henderson's Seven Barrows stables.
After being a professional jockey for just over a year, de Boinville won the 2015 Cheltenham Gold Cup riding Coneygree for trainer Mark Bradstock. [6] [7] Since then, de Boinville has partnered horses such as Altior, Shishkin, Sprinter Sacre and Might Bite to his total 15 victories at the Cheltenham Festival.
In 2019, de Boinville became the top jockey at the Cheltenham Festival with 3 wins. He also won the Grand National Hurdle Stakes at Far Hills, USA with Brain Power in 2019. [8]
He won his first grade 1 in Ireland when he partnered Marie's Rock to win the 2022 Mares Champion Hurdle at Punchestown. [9]