The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap steeplechase over an official distance of about 4 miles and 2½ furlongs, with horses jumping 30 fences over two laps. It is the most valuable jump race in Europe, with a prize fund of £1 million in 2017. An event that is prominent in British culture, the race is popular amongst many people who do not normally watch or bet on horse racing at other times of the year.
A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual who rode horses in racing. They must be light, typically around a weight of 100–120 lb. (45–55 kg), and physically fit. They are typically self-employed, and are paid a small fee from the horse trainer, whose colors they wear while competing in a race. They also receive a percentage of the horse's winnings. The job has a very high risk of debilitating or life-threatening injuries, not only from racing accidents but also, because of strict weight restrictions, from eating disorders.
Frederick James Archer, also known by the nickname The Tin Man, was an English flat race jockey of the Victorian era, described as "the best all-round jockey that the turf has ever seen".
Karl, 8th Prince Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau was the 8th Prince Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau.
Golden Miller (1927–1957) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who is the most successful Cheltenham Gold Cup horse ever, winning the race in five consecutive years between 1932 and 1936. He also is the only horse to win both of the United Kingdom's premier steeplechase races - the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Grand National - in the same year (1934).
Foinavon (1958–1971) was an Irish racehorse. He won the Grand National in 1967 at odds of 100/1 after the rest of the field fell, refused or were hampered or brought down in a mêlée at the 23rd fence. The fence was officially named after Foinavon in 1984.
Crisp was a champion steeplechase horse. He was a bay Thoroughbred gelding that was foaled in 1963 in Australia. In his native country, he won many important jumping races, particularly two-milers, including the Hiskens Steeplechase in 1969 and 1970. So well did he jump, he was nicknamed "The Black Kangaroo". However, Crisp is probably best remembered for his epic contest with Red Rum in the 1973 Grand National in England.
The 1840 Grand Liverpool Steeplechase was the second official annual running of a steeplechase, later to become known as the Grand National Steeplechase handicap horse race, which took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool on Thursday 5 March 1840 and attracted a then smallest ever field of 13 runners.
Jennifer Susan Pitman OBE is a British former racehorse trainer and author. She became the first woman to train a Grand National winner when Corbiere won the race in 1983, and she won a second Grand National with Royal Athlete in 1995. She has also trained two Cheltenham Gold Cup winners with Burrough Hill Lad in 1984 and Garrison Savanah in 1991. Following her retirement from horse training in 1998, she became a writer of novels, principally with a racing theme. She is a member of the Disciplinary Panel and Licensing Committee of the British Horseracing Authority.
The 2008 Grand National was the 161st official annual running of the Grand National steeplechase which took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 5 April 2008 and attracted the maximum permitted field of 40 runners, competing for total prize money of £450,640.
The 2009 Grand National was the 162nd running of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 4 April 2009.
The 1994 Grand National was the 147th official renewal of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree near Liverpool, England, on 9 April 1994.
The 2012 Grand National was the 165th annual renewal of the Grand National horse race at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England. The showpiece steeplechase, which concluded a three-day meeting which is one of only four held at Aintree throughout the year, took place on 14 April 2012. The maximum permitted field of 40 runners ran the last 4 miles 856 yards (7.220 km) of Aintree's National Course featuring 30 fences, competing for record prize money of £975,000, making it the highest-valued National Hunt race in the United Kingdom.
Shotover (1879–1898) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. In a career that lasted from 1882 to 1884, she ran 15 times and won five races. As a three-year-old, racing against colts, she became the first filly to win the first two legs of the English Triple Crown: the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket and the Derby at Epsom. She went on to win twice at Royal Ascot, but failed in her bid for the Triple Crown when she finished third in the St Leger at Doncaster. She was retired in 1884 and became a successful and influential broodmare. Shotover died in 1898.
St. Blaise (1880–1909) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career that lasted from 1882 to 1884 he ran twelve time and won seven races, although three of these wins were walk-overs. His most important success came in 1883 when he won The Derby. At the end of the season he was sold and exported to the United States to stand as a stallion where he had some success. St. Blaise was killed in a fire in 1909.
Foxhall (1879–1904) was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was trained in Britain during a racing career that lasted from 1880 until June 1882 during which he ran eleven times and won seven races. As a three-year-old in 1881 he proved himself to be the outstanding colt of the season in Europe, winning the Grand Prix de Paris and becoming the second of only three horses to complete the Autumn Double of the Cesarewitch and the Cambridgeshire.
The 1850 Grand National was, at the time, the 15th annual running of a handicap steeplechase horse race at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England on Wednesday, 27 February 1850. It was later retrospectively recorded as the twelfth official running in 1864. It attracted a then record field of thirty-two runners and was won by the unconsidered Irish entrant, Abd El Kader.
Manifesto was a British National Hunt racehorse best known for winning the Aintree Grand National twice and running in the race a record eight times. He was instrumental in restoring the prestige and popularity to the Grand National as the race had been marred by corruption in previous years.
Captain Timothy Arthur Forster, OBE commonly known as Tim Forster, was an English racehorse trainer and previously an amateur jockey. As a trainer he had 1,346 winners, including 3 Grand Nationals at Aintree in Liverpool. Forster's last runner as a Licensed Trainer came on 30 May 1998, when he won with Albermarle in a novice chase at Market Rasen.
Minella Times is a retired Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in National Hunt racing. In 2021, he won the Grand National under Rachael Blackmore, becoming the first horse ridden by a female jockey to win the race.
