VALE PAT SMULLEN 16 Sep 2020 09:46
Nine times Irish
champion jockey Pat Smullen has died. Smullen, who had been battling pancreatic
cancer, passed away in Ireland on Tuesday evening. He was 43 at the time of his
passing, having been diagnosed with cancer in 2018.
Born in County
Offaly, on 22 May 1977, Smullen, the son of a farmer and who became involved
with horses at the age of 11, went on to form a formidable alliance with master
trainer Dermot Weld, taking over in 1999 from another riding great – Mick
Kinane. Among their greatest triumphs was the Derby at Epsom in 2016 with
Harzand. The pair went on to secure the Irish Derby and cement the legacy of a
rider who enjoyed his first victory at Dundalk on 11 June 1993.
Smullen, victorious
in 12 European classics, leaves behind his wife, Frances, and their three
children – Hannah, Paddy and Sarah.
