The Race That Never Was - The '93 National

Twenty years ago, the world’s most famous race ended in farce, and its line in the history books has been left blank. The race that never was has ironically become one of the most famous moments in racing history, and on its 20^th anniversary, we relive the drama on the day, the resulting investigation, and the record-breaking voided winner long since forgotten.

The Race That Never Race

On a breezy overcast April day at the Liverpool track, on good to firm ground, 39 runners lined up for the 147^th renewal of the Aintree Grand National. As the runners and riders circled at the start, seconds before the off, a group of around fifteen animal rights protestors broke onto the track close to the first fence. Some jockeys stood up in their stirrups to alert the starter to the intrusion, but the real drama was yet to unfold. Upon the first attempt at a start, a number of runners broke the tape, and the starter, Keith Brown, frantically waved his red flag for the riders to turn around. On the second try, jockey Richard Dunwoody became tangled in the tape, and Brown recalled the field again, but there was a problem. His red flag did not unfurl, and 30 of the 39 took off to the roar of the expecting crowd. Race commentator, Peter O’Sullevan called the debacle: “They've been recalled — but, the majority don't realise that it is a recall! They're going down to jump the first.”

Second Official Fails To Halt The False Starters

As the field trundled into the first circuit, officials, trainers, and the crowd tried frantically, but to no avail, to stop the race. By the time they jumped the famous sixth fence, Becher’s Brook, only one of the horses had fallen, and the illegitimate contest seemed unstoppable. BBC's commentary team of Peter O'Sullevan, John Hanmer and Jim McGrath repeatedly told the bemused viewers, “It has got to be a void race.” As they tackled the water jump at the end of the first circuit, most riders became aware of the issue, and pulled up, including most people’s idea of the winner, Zeta’s Lad, who was unbeaten in five starts that year. Despite this exodus, 14 competitors continued onto the second circuit, and Sure Metal and Howe Street led the field until they both fell at the 20^th fence. Following a spate of fallers at the 21^st, seven horses went on to complete the course. As they passed the infamous elbow, with an energy sapping 494 yard run-in ahead of them, four horses vied for the lead. At the post, a strongly ridden 50/1 shot, Esha Ness was in front. He was to be denied his career defining moment when the race was declared void, and it was an added irony that his winning time (9m 1.40s) was the second fastest in the long history of the race. A re-run was ruled out by the Jockey Club, and bookmakers’ hands were forced. They had to repay over £75 million to punters, while a worldwide television audience of 300 million were left disappointed. The trainer of leading fancy Zeta’s Lad, John Upson was particularly enraged, pushing this point: “I spent a year getting my horse ready for this day. I have sweated blood with him. I have come here today absolutely ready to run him and this is what happens. I think it's an absolute disgrace.” He later said he reacted out of frustration, and pure adrenaline.

Man in Focus: Starter, Keith Brown

Following the initial condemnation on track, an inquiry chaired by High Court judge Sir Michael Connell was tasked with accrediting accountability, and reforming the start procedures for future Nationals. Partial blame was placed at the door of starter Keith Brown, who was officiating his final race before retirement, but most blame was put on the recall official who was placed further down the track, Ken Evans, for not noticing the second false start. The Jockey Club endorsed a 34 page working group report which recommended updated starter regulations. However, a future introduction of technology was shelved due to a lack of overseas success. Instead, the starter tape was made sturdier, two more radio officials in contact with the starter were introduced to wave yellow fluorescent flags following a false start, while a third assistant starter was placed further down the track. This third official is permitted to follow breakaway false starters in a car to stop them if they fail to heed his initial warnings.

The Silks Worn By John White Aboard Esha Ness

The chair of this working group, Andrew Parker Bowles was emphatic in his assessment of the incident, and strong in his assertions for future contests. He remarked, "You start 7,000 races a year with flagmen and it went wrong just three times last year, but one of them was the Grand National. It won't happen again.” Since then, every running of the race has started without any problems. The pity amidst the pandemonium is that Esha Ness’s record breaking performance was discredited, and a great ‘winner’ was written out of history.

The King's Horse

King George V

Emily Davison

One hundred years ago this year, the 1913 Epsom Derby made headlines for every reason but the sport itself. A woman had stepped in front of King George V’s horse, Anmer as the field rounded Tattenham Corner for the home straight. This woman was Emily Davison; a suffragette of the early part of the 20^th Century who had been involved in high profile, violent, and extreme forms of protest for Emmeline Pankhurst’s Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) since 1906. The story of that day, and of Emily Davison, is more than just a couple of pages in history. A copy of ‘The Suffragette’ newspaper following Davison’s death bore the caption, “She died for women.” This is that story:

Davison is thrown to the ground upon collision 

The modern day Derby still maintains a touch of royalty with the Queen regularly attending, but the elitism is not seen to the same extent as past centuries. From its first running in 1780, the race was an elite event, attended by the King and Royal family, and large cohorts of the upper middle classes. On the day in question, June 5, 1913, both Queen Mary and King George V had come to watch the Derby. The middle part of the track away from the King and the grandstand was a free area, and this is where the working-class crowds would congregate to enjoy the racing. It was amidst these crowds that Emily Davison placed herself at the sharp turn of the famous Tattenham Corner of the track, holding her Suffragette banner of purple, white, and green.



As the first large group of runners thundered  past, Davison pushed her way to the rail and  emerged onto the track. She attempted to grab the bridle of Anmer who was in the second group, but with the horse travelling over 30mph, she was thrown to the ground in a blur of flailing limbs and kicked up turf. Some eyewitnesses claimed the woman had just been attempting to cross the track, thinking all the horses had passed, but it is widely thought her intention was to disrupt the race, and not sacrifice herself for the cause. This contention was supported by the fact a return train ticket and ticket for a Suffragette dance had been found in her handbag following the incident. Some say she may have been attempting to attach the Suffragette banner to Anmer to garner publicity. Davison was taken to Epsom Cottage Hospital with severe head injuries for treatment, but four days later, on June 8 1913, Emily Davison passed away. Herbert Jones, the jockey of Anmer suffered a mild concussion, but moreover, he is quoted as saying he was “haunted by that woman’s face” for years afterward. He was found dead by his son in 1951 having taken his own life. 

The Suffragette, June 13, 1913

The Daily Sketch, June 5, 1913

The reaction to Emily Davison’s death was varied, with ‘The Suffragette’ dedicating its June 13^th front page to a tribute to her, but the Daily Sketch describing the whole race, including the Davison incident, a disqualified horse, and a 100/1 winner as “History’s Most Wonderful Derby”. The Royal reaction included a diary entry by King George V which read, “poor Herbert Jones and Anmer had been sent flying” on a “most disappointing day”, while Queen Mary sent Jones a telegram wishing him well after his “sad accident caused through the abominable conduct of a brutal lunatic woman”. An unread letter from Emily Davison’s mother was left at her bedside contained the telling words, “I cannot believe that you could have done such a dreadful act. Even for the Cause which I know you have given up your whole heart and soul to, and it has done so little in return for you.”

Emily Davison’s funeral attracted a large crowd, and her gravestone bears the WSPU slogan, "Deeds not words". The funeral was held in London on June 14, 1913 and her coffin was brought by train to Morpeth for burial on June 15. She was buried in the same plot as her father who died twenty years previous in 1893. Some historians subsequently argued that Davison’s actions on June 5 had damaged the Suffragist Movement because of how highly respected the Royal family were at the time in Britain, but the day has survived as a symbol of women’s struggle for equal rights in the early part of the 20^th century.

This is a timeline charting the Suffragist Movement in Britain in the late 19th, and early 20th centuries

The History Makers

Whether it’s over hurdles or fences, the flat mile, or the five furlong sprint, racehorses have captured the hearts and minds of enthusiasts for hundreds of years. On the flat, we look for a steady, smooth travelling horse, which can cruise past opponents, exploding into a gallop to the post. On the national hunt circuit, the punter admires a strong traveller, a fluent jumper, and an animal that has the strength and stamina to power clear of rivals in the closing stages. So which horses made our all-time greatest lists? We have compiled a Top 3 Flat List, and a Top 3 National Hunt List based on a straw poll on TopBet, my Facebook racing page. 

Here is our flat list compiled using the poll: 

1st - Frankel

When I asked TopBet’s Facebook following to suggest a horse that epitomises the essence of flat racing, one name bounded clear, and that was Frankel. The Sir Henry Cecil trained colt became the highest rated racehorse the world has ever seen in May 2011, and stayed there until his retirement in 2012. Frankel was foaled in 2008, and began his racing career as a two-year-old in a one mile maiden at Newmarket, where, despite breaking slowly, he won by ½ a length from subsequent King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner Nathaniel. He went on to win 14 times unbeaten in a stellar career, including triumphs in the 2,000 Guineas and Sussex Stakes where he beat his sternest opponent in the form of Canford Cliffs. 
 



2nd - Sea The Stars


Sea the Stars – The John Oxx trained Sea the Stars is one of the most iconic horses in racing history, having excelled beyond expectation after a debut defeat at the Curragh in 2008 as a two-year-old. After this day, Sea the Stars remained unbeaten, racking up multiple Group 1 success, including the illustrious treble of the Epsom Derby, 2,000 Guineas, and Eclipse Stakes. Although only on the track for two years, Sea the Stars sewed his name into the fabric of racing’s heart, and represents Ireland amply on this list. In 2009, he was sent to Paris where he once looked in trouble, boxed-in in a 19 runner field in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, but he managed to get out and win eased down by two lengths. In doing so, he became the only horse to win the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Epsom Derby, and 2,000 Guineas in the same year. It is only a pity he hadn’t arrived two years later when Frankel came on the scene; that would have been the race of our lifetime. 



3rd - Nijinsky

We have to return to the 60s and 70s for the horse filling our No.3 spot, and it comes in the shape of the Vincent O’Brien trained Nijinsky. In 1970, Nijinsky truly announced himself as one of the greats. He became the first horse in 45 years to win the English Triple Crown: The English 2,000 Guineas, Epsom Derby, and St. Leger. Since this triumph 43 years ago, no horse has replicated the achievement of Nijinsky, and he remains the only horse since World War II to win the Triple Crown. Nijinsky was a massive presence of a horse standing at 16.3 hands, and his other notable wins came in the Dewhurst, the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, and the Irish Derby. The Ballydoyle great Vincent O’Brien once said Nijinsky was the greatest horse he ever trained, and he trained some good ones in his time. As O’Brien said himself on that occasion, for “sheer brilliance”, he makes it onto our list too. 




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National Hunt requires a completely different animal than the flat scene; arguably a stronger, more durable, enduring specimen, with not only the physical prowess to succeed, but a real will to get his head in front. Here are the horses that have made our Top 3 National Hunt horses: 


1st - Arkle 


In racing circles, the debate rages on as to who is the greatest ever; Nicholls’ Kauto Star, or Tom Dreaper’s Arkle. Arkle ran 35 times throughout his career, winning a total of 27 times, and he tops this list. He was foaled in 1957, and in a relatively short career, he managed to ravage fields of competitors at the highest level. A record that remains to this day, Arkle is the highest rated steeplechaser of all-time, and no modern horse has come close to passing him. He won three consecutive Cheltenham Gold Cups (1964, 1965, 1966), as well as a King George VI Chase, an Irish Grand National, and two Hennessy Gold Cups. His 65' and 66' wins in the race would send him into the stratosphere of the racing universe. He slammed Millhouse by 20 lengths in the 1965 Gold Cup, and bettered that again in '66 with a 30 length victory as the shortest priced favourite (1/10) in Gold Cup history. Famous racing commentator Peter O’Sullevan described Arkle as a “freak of nature”, and remarked we are unlikely to see his sort again. He was right, and it will take a super-specimen to knock him off his perch as the greatest. 








2nd - Kauto Star 

Like Frankel on the flat list, Kauto Star was a recurring horse in our National Hunt poll. The sheer endurance and consistency at the very highest level of the Paul Nicholls trained gelding saw him storm up our list, only to be denied by Arkle. He was foaled in the year 2000, and ran 41 times in a long, often eventful career until the age of 12 in 2012. Kauto Star began his career in France in 2003, but the 2004/05 season saw his move to England into the able hands of trainer, Paul Nicholls. Having won the 2007 Cheltenham Gold Cup, Kauto had strong competition in 2008 with another Nicholls horse, Denman emerging as a major rival. Both horses excelled, but that year’s Gold Cup was destined for Denman’s connections. Proving his toughness, resilience, and winning spirit, Kauto Star returned in 2009 to re-oppose his stablemate Denman in a long awaited renewal of the Gold Cup. This time, Kauto Star powered clear up the Cheltenham hill, winning by 13 lengths from his great rival. He went on to resume a scintillating career, winning three more King George VI chases, and enjoying a further two successes in the Betfair Chase. He is certainly one of the finest racing specimens ever known.  




3rd - Istabraq 

Switching from fences to hurdles, Istabraq makes it onto our list at the expense of Best Mate; a three time Gold Cup winner. Istabraq was a rare venture into the National Hunt scene for predominantly flat trainer, Aiden O’Brien, and was foaled in May 1992. In Ireland, Istabraq is regarded as a national treasure, and the finest hurdler the country ever sent over the Irish Sea to tackle Cheltenham. Recent years has seen Willie Mullins’ Hurricane Fly emerge as a possible successor, but his poor performances in 2012 has seen his colours fade into the shadow of Istabraq. Istabraq won three consecutive champion hurdles at Cheltenham (1998, 1999, 2000). He competed in 29 hurdle races throughout his career, and he won 23 of these, placing 2nd on three further occasions. As well as this, he monopolised the Irish Champion Hurdle for four straight years (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001). A better hurdler has yet to emerge anywhere in the world.