SINCE the first official races were held at Aintree in 1829, there have been many memorable winners of the Grand National.
Now as we begin another 10-year cycle in 2010, we look back on the first winners from each decade.
1829
PRIOR to the creation of the race we know today as the Grand National, Aintree was the home to Flat horse racing from 1829.
The first official races at Aintree were organised by a syndicate, headed by the owner of Liverpool’s Waterloo Hotel, William Lynn. He leased the land from Lord Sefton, set out a course and built a grandstand.
Lord Molyneux laid the foundation stone on February 7, 1829 and placed a bottle full of sovereigns in the footings. The first Flat fixture was held five months later on July 7. A horse called MUFTI won the opening race, the one and a quarter mile Croxteth Stakes.
1840
JERRY had been the last of 18 runners in 1839 when Lottery won but dropped out just before the race. He went on to win as a 12-1 outsider in his Grand National debut in 1840. Jerry, ridden by Bartholomew Bretherton, ended up with a seemingly easy victory from what had been a hard fought race.
The 1840 Grand National, however, is far more famous because of the events surrounding another horse Valentine. Irish amateur Alan Power was so confident in his horse that he bet they would be ahead at the wall.
The pair were ahead approaching the second brook before the horse reared up violently and corkscrewing over, but still reaching the other side. The brook has been known as Valentine’s Brook ever since.
1850
TINY in stature, but with a huge heart, Irish-trained ABD-EL-KADER became an instant favourite with the Aintree crowd when defying his build to negotiate the Grand National fences.
Unquoted in the betting prior to the first victory in 1850, the bookmakers were not so generous the following year when installing Abd-El-Kader the 7-1 joint favourite, but the handicapper seemed to have a shorter memory, and, just 6lb higher than the previous year, Abd-El-Kader duly obliged to become the first horse to win the Grand National twice.
1860
THE 1860s proved to be the decade for mares in the Grand National. ANATIS, the 7-2 favourite, became the third of 13 mares to win and the first of four that decade.
1870
THE COLONEL was sent off 100-7 for his first Grand National victory in 1869, although the relative confidence behind the six-year-old may have been more reflective of his jockey George Stevens, who had already won the great race three times, than the form that The Colonel had shown.
Despite a hike in the weights for the following year’s renewal, The Colonel attracted considerable support and the 7-2 favourite held off the challenge of The Doctor to win by half a length and hand Stevens his fifth win, a record which still stands.
1880
EMPRESS won the 1880 Grand National ridden by Tommy Beasley who had also ridden Martha to finish second in 1878 and third place in 1879. Due to his past performances Beasley and Empress started at 8-1 in a race which saw only 14 starters. But of those 14 there were 10 finishers.
1890
JOCKEY Arthur Nightingall had finished second in 1888 and third as in 1889 but finally won the Grand National in 1890 when aboard favourite ILEX at the starting odds of 4-1. Pan, who Nightingall finished third on a year earlier, was again place at 100-1.
1900
THE winner AMBUSH II was owned by The Prince of Wales, later to become King Edward VII.
1910
BOB CHADWICK won the Grand National aboard JENKINSTOWN in 1910 having finished second 12 months earlier on Judas. The pair beat Grand Steeplechase de Paris winner Jerry M, who was ridden by Lester Piggott’s grandfather Ernie. Jerry M and Piggott carried top weight of 12st7lb, but went one better when winning the 1912 National.
1920
TROYTOWN gave amateur rider Jack Anthony his third success, winning by 12 lengths in heavy ground. The race was worth a record £5,000. Algy Anthony, who in 1900 had ridden Ambush to victory, trained the winner.
1930
SHAUN GOILIN won the 1930 Grand National ridden by Tommy Cullinan. The horse also finished third two years later. For jockey Cullinan it was a sweet success as two years earlier, when aboard Billy Barton he led until late in the race only to be beaten into in second place by Tipperary Tim.
1940
THE Lord Stalbridge-trained/owned BOGSKAR won the final Grand National before World War II stopped the event between 1941 and 1945.
1950
HER Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, (who became the Queen Mother on the death of her husband in 1952) had her first runner. Monaveen, jointly owned by Princess Elizabeth (the present Queen), finished fifth behind winner FREEBOOTER.
1960
The BBC televised the race for the first time, 33 years after the initial radio coverage. Peter O’Sullevan, Clive Graham and Peter Bromley were the commentators. Neville Crump trained his third and final Grand National winner, MERRYMAN II, ridden by Gerry Scott, who acted as the Grand National starter in 1996.
Crump was also successful with Sheila’s Cottage in 1948 and Teal four seasons later.
1970
PAT TAAFFE, successful in the Grand National on Quare Times in 1955, landed a second victory aboard GAY TRIP, his last ride in the race.
1980
DESPITE seeming to be unsuited by heavy ground, BEN NEVIS won the Grand National in desperate conditions which saw only four finishers.
The 12-year-old was ridden by merchant banker Charles Fenwick, who became the second American amateur to triumph in the race following Tommy Smith 15 years earlier. Aintree mourned the death of Mirabel Topham, who died aged 88.
1990
MR FRISK set a new record Grand National winning time of 8m 47.8s when partnered by Marcus Armytage, the most recent amateur to be successful.
2000
ANOTHER Irish father and son combination was successful as Ruby Walsh partnered PAPILLON, trained by his father Ted, to victory.
The nine-year-old had been backed down to 10-1 from 33-1 on the day of the race and cost the bookmakers a reported £10million.
The race was worth £500,000 for the first time.
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