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Greatest Epsom Derby trainer dies1st June 2009
Just days ahead of the 2009 Epsom Derby, the racing world has been saddened by the news that Vincent O'Brien, trainer of six Epsom Derby winners, died today aged 92, at his home in Straffan, Co Kildare, Ireland.
O'Brien's first Epsom Derby winner was Larkspur in 1962, followed by Sir Ivor (1968), Nijinsky (1970), Roberto (1972), The Minstrel (1977) and finally Golden Fleece (1982).
The Epsom Derby was a race which he adored: "There is no doubt that winning the six Derbys gave me the six greatest thrills of my life," he said when guest of honour at the 2008 meeting.
"For me an Epsom Derby win is the greatest prize of all - the ultimate goal for a trainer - and it has been thus for over 200 years."
O'Brien rewrote horse racing's record books in a training career that saw unparalleled success under both codes - Flat and National Hunt.
The Irishman won every big race in Britain and his homeland over a period spanning half a century.
He is the only man to have trained three consecutive Grand National winners and also had the last Triple Crown winner, Nijinsky. And he helped set up the hugely successful Coolmore racing and thoroughbred breeding operation.
While he may not be a modern-day household name outside racing, O'Brien leaves an indelible mark on his chosen field and many of his achievements are unlikely to be bettered.
In 2003, he beat Lester Piggott and a host of other leading figures to be voted the sport's all-time great in a poll of Racing Post readers, capturing nearly 30% of the vote.
It was a rare occasion where Piggott was prepared to settle for second. He had, after all, ridden four of the trainer's six Epsom Derby winners.
Piggott said that O'Brien was, without doubt, the best trainer of the 20th century:
"The key to his success was that he had such great foresight. He was 10 to 15 years ahead of his time."
In total O'Brien secured 16 English and 27 Irish Classic victories, 25 Royal Ascot wins and 23 Cheltenham Festival successes during an amazing career which spanned 51 years.
He began training in 1943 and quickly graduated from winning moderate races to sending out the likes of Cottage Rake to win the Irish Cesarewitch, the Leopardstown Chase, the King George VI Chase and three Cheltenham Gold Cups.
The trainer also masterminded the career of triple Champion Hurdle winner Hatton's Grace before buying the Ballydoyle yard in 1951 from where he sent out Early Mist, Royal Tan and Quare Times to win consecutive Grand Nationals.
However, O'Brien eventually switched his attention to the Flat, where he clinched those 16 English and 27 Irish Classics and the 25 winners at Royal Ascot.
His achievements included guiding Nijinsky to land the elusive Triple Crown - winning the 2,000 Guineas, Derby and St Leger in 1970.
It was not all plain sailing, however. Back in 1954, the Irish stewards - unhappy with how they perceived some of his horses were being run - withdrew his licence for three months.
And in 1960, the Irish Turf Club banned him from training in a row over alleged doping.
He was later exonerated and went on to train horses such as Sir Ivor, Roberto, The Minstrel and Sadler's Wells, whose names became etched in racing folklore.
O'Brien won the Breeders' Cup Mile with Royal Academy in 1990, and retired four years later.
He was 73 when he saddled Royal Academy to that fairytale victory in the US and had been instrumental in persuading the 54-year-old Piggott to come out of retirement for the ride.
With his wife Jacqueline (an Australian MP's daughter), O'Brien spent his latter years dividing his time between Australia and Ireland.
It was in Ireland where he had established the Coolmore breeding operation with racehorse owner Robert Sangster and his son-in-law John Magnier.
They developed a successful formula of buying top-class yearlings from America and Canada with a view to winning Classics and turning them into big-earning stallions.
The business continues to thrive to this day, with Aidan O'Brien - who is no relation - now holding the training reins with distinction.
Aidan has six horses entered from Ballydoyle in Saturday's Epsom Derby, and it would be poignant if one should triumph.
Vincent O'Brien greets jockeys prior to the 2008 Epsom Derby