Irish Jockeys

1. Irish Jockeys

2. Ruby Walsh • Sport: Horse-riding • Nationality: Irish • Date of Birth: 14th May 1979

3. Ruby Walsh – Grand National Winner • Walsh was born in Kill, Co.Kildare. • Showing talent from an early age, Walsh won the Irish amateur title twice, in 1996/7 (aged 18) and 1997/8, before turning professional. He won the English Grand National in 2000 at his first attempt, aged 20, on Papillon, a horse trained by his father and owned by Mrs J Maxwell Moran.Father and son then went on to win the Irish Grand National with Commanche Court the same year. • In the 2004/5 season Walsh won three of the four Nationals: the Irish on the 2006 Grand National winner, Numbersixvalverde, the Welsh on subsequent 2007 Grand National winner Silver Birch, and the English on Hedgehunter. He rode Cornish Rebel in the Scottish, but was beaten a short long head by Joe's Edge. However, he had earlier success in that race on Take Control in 2002 and he and Tony McCoy are the only jockeys currently riding to have won all four Nationals .

4. Ruby Walsh – 1900 Winners • To date Walsh has ridden over nineteen hundred winners including 32 winners at the Cheltenham Festival since his first win in 1998 on Alexander Banquet. These include the 2004 Queen Mother Champion Chase on Azertyuiop, the 2007 and 2009 Cheltenham Gold Cup on the favourite, Kauto Starand two subsequent Queen Mother successes in 2008 and 2009 on the brilliant Master Minded. He also won both the 2006 Tingle Creek Chase and the King George VI Chase on Kauto Star. He repeated the King George feat, again on Kauto Star, in 2007 (just days after returning from injury), 2008, and most recently in 2009 when Kauto Star won impressively by 36 lengths. He won the Hennessy Gold Cup twice, in 2003 on Strong Flow, and in more recent times, 2009 with Denman. He also won the Whitbread Gold Cup twice, in 2001 and 2003 (the latter when it was run as the Attheraces Gold Cup), both times on Ad Hoc. • In 2007, Walsh won the inaugural British Horseracing Board Jockeys' Order of Merit award.

5. Ruby Walsh – Cheltenham Champion • At the 2009 Cheltenham Festival Walsh rode a record-breaking seven winners over the four days. On the second day of the 2010 festival he rode Sanctuaire to victory in the Fred Winter Juvenile Novices Handicap Hurdle and therefore became the jockey with the most wins in the history of the Cheltenham festival. • In March 2011, Walsh rode Hurricane Fly to victory in the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham, finishing ahead of Peddlers Cross and Oscar Whisky. It was Walsh's first victory in the feature race of the opening day at the Cheltenham Festival. • He was leading jockey at the Festival in 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 & 2013 Walsh has won the Irish jump jockeys' title on six occasions to date: 1998/99 (his debut season as a professional), 2000/01, 2004/05, 2005/06, 2006/07 and 2007/08.

6. Barry Geraghty • Sport: Horse-riding • Nationality: Irish • Date of Birth: 16th September 1979

7. Barry Geraghty • Barry is an Irish jockey from Pelletstown, Co. Meath. • Barry was the leading rider at the 2012 Cheltenham Festival and 2011 Grand National. • Geraghty rode his first winner in January 1997 and three years later he became the Irish Champion jump jockey for the first time. He rode his first Cheltenham winner on the Jessica Harrington trained Moscow Flyer in the 2002 Arkle Chase.

8. Barry Geraghty – Irish Jump Jockey • He won the Grand National in 2003 on Monty's Pass. Also that year he won five races at the Cheltenham Festival, including the Queen Mother Champion Chase on Moscow Flyer and was voted Irish sports personality of the year. • In the 2003-4 season he became Champion Irish jump jockey for the second time and won the Stayers Hurdle at Cheltenham on the JJ O' Neill trained Iris's Gift. • Geraghty and Moscow Flyer won their second Champion Chases at the 2005 Cheltenham Festival, and Barry also won the Cheltenham Gold Cup on Kicking King for trainer Tom Taaffe at that meeting. Following the retirement of Mick Fitzgerald he became first jockey to the Nicky Henderson stable in 2008.

9. Barry Geraghty – 1000th Winner • In 2009 he won the Champion Hurdle on Punjabi the Arkle Challenge Trophy on Forpadydeplasterer and Triumph Hurdle on Zaynar. In winning the Champion Hurdle he became the first jockey to have won the big four races at Cheltenham (Champion Hurdle, Champion Chase, Stayers Hurdle, Gold Cup) and The English Grand National. • On the 2nd November 2009 he rode his 1000th winner under National Hunt Rules in UK and Ireland when the Nicky Henderson trained Duc De Regniere won at Kempton. He won his fourth Champion Chase at the 2012 Cheltenham festival on Finians Rainbow. He has had at least one winner at each Cheltenham festival since his first victory in 2002. • On 28 August 2012 he recorded his 1,000th Irish winner after a treble at Cork Racecourse.

10. JT McNamara • Sport: Horse-riding • Nationality: Irish • Date of Birth: 1975

11. JT McNamara – Irish Steeplechase Jockey • John Thomas McNamara is a former Steeplechase Jockey. • He sustained a back injury after a fall at the 2013 Cheltenham Festival which left him paralysed. • McNamara won over 600 racecourse victories during his career.

12. JT McNamara – Serious Fall • The 37-year-old amateur jockey was injured following a fall in the FulkeWalwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup where he fractured two vertebrae in his neck. • He had to be airlifted to a hospital in Bristol, where he remains, although plans are to be made for a transfer to Dublin as soon as he is well enough.

13. What JT McNamara’s friends say: Fingers crossed he'll get something moving. He's pretty strong-minded, he'll be determined. He would ride horses all day - loved it, wouldn't matter how many horses he had to ride out, he would keep going, he was always very fit. All through the summer he would be breaking horses as well. JT McNamara remains in the Frenchay Hospital, Bristol. Whilst he suffered a serious neck injury resulting in paralysis, he has made progress in the last week and is in a very positive frame of mind.