Aintree Racecourse

Rachael Blackmore, who made history when becoming the first female jockey to ride the winner of the Randox Grand National in 2021, will be inducted as a Grand National Legend for 2026. Blackmore will join the likes of Ginger McCain, Jenny Pitman and JP McManus as a Grand National Legend, along with equine stars Red Rum, Tiger Roll and Aldaniti. A plaque celebrating her achievements will be unveiled at Aintree Racecourse on the opening day of the Randox Grand National Festival (Thursday, April 9). The ceremony will take place by...

Whereweallbelong, who won his debut point-to-point by a staggering 36 lengths, is one of 16 lots entered in the Goffs Aintree Sale next week. The sale will be held at Aintree's winners' enclosure on opening day of the Randox Health Grand National Festival after the last race on Thursday, April 9.    Consisting exclusively of four-year-olds, the catalogue features another nine debut point-to-point or bumper winners, and final entries will be confirmed next week. The son of Saint Des Saints (lot 110) is a full-brother to Grade 3-placed hurdler Saint Felicien,...

The Jockey Club, the largest commercial group in British horseracing, has agreed an exclusive new 20-year deal with Levy, the sports and entertainment division of Compass Group UK & Ireland. The partnership will enable The Jockey Club to make a capital investment of £100 million to revolutionise the spectator experience across its UK racecourses, funded by a payment from Compass as part of the new deal. The Jockey Club's investment plans include a significant revamp of the main entrance to Epsom Downs Racecourse, home to the Betfred Derby Festival. A...

The £1-million Randox Grand National will become a 72-hour declaration race beginning in 2026, Aintree Racecourse announced on Wednesday. This year's edition is the 178th at Aintree and will be run on Saturday, April 11. The final declaration stage will be Wednesday, April 8. Previously, the final declarations were held on Thursday. The number of reserves for the race, which were reintroduced in 2025, will increase from four to six. Reserves can be brought into the Randox Grand National up to 1 p.m. the day before the race. This year,...

Sam Waley-Cohen, who was riding in his final race before retirement, booted home 50-1 shot Noble Yeats (Ire) (Yeats {Ire}) to a 2 1/4-length victory in the G3 Randox Grant National. The amateur rider had announced his pending retirement on Thursday. Any Second Now (Ire) (Oscar {Ire}) was second after running third in 2021, 20 lengths ahead of Cheltenham winner Delta Work (Fr) (Network {Ger}). "He ran for me, he couldn't go the early pace and I just tried to find pockets to give him a bit of space to...

Back after a two-year COVID-19 hiatus, the 2022 Goffs UK Aintree Sale was topped by the winning point-to-pointer Croke Park (Ire) (Walk In The Park {Ire}) (lot 8) at £400,000. A 4-year-old gelding who ran second at Lingstown on debut in March, the Ballyboy Stables-consigned bay was purchased by Gordon Elliot Racing. His half-brother, Etre Francais (Ire) (Anzillero {Ger}), has placed third in a French listed hurdle. This is the family of the graded-winning chaser Oiseau de Nuit (Fr) (Evening World {Fr}). Second on the buyers' sheet was lot 1,...

The G3 Randox Grand National at Aintree Racecourse will receive international TV exposure on Apr. 9, as approximately 30 broadcasters will show the iconic race. Due to begin at 5:15 p.m. local time, the race will feature 40 runners over 4 miles 2 1/2 furlongs. The Jockey Club, Racecourse Media Group (RMG), and HBA Media have secured a wide range of broadcasters, including several first-time takers. New broadcasters of the Aintree showpiece are: Eclat (14 countries in South-East Asia), NENT (Scandinavia), Watch4 (Germany, Switzerland and Austria) and Polsat (Poland). Wasu.TV...

The Rose Paterson Community Sportswoman Award and the Rose Paterson Trust will be launched in honour of the late Aintree Chairman Rose Paterson, who died last June. Paterson's daughter Evie Paterson shared the news while introducing the sixth annual Aintree Grand Women's Summit, which was held via Zoom. The theme was Sport and Mental Health: A Powerful Relationship. Evie Paterson said, "It shouldn't be me here at all; it should be my mother. She always did the introductions to the Grand Women's Summit so beautifully and so gracefully, and I...

Nicholas Wrigley, currently chairman of investment bank N M Rothschild & Sons Limited, has been named to succeed the late Rose Paterson as chairman of Aintree Racecourse. Wrigley was appointed as a Jockey Club Member in 1994 and was senior steward of The Jockey Club between 2009 and 2014. He has been chairman of The National Stud since 2019. He has been on the York Race Committee since 1992 and was chairman from 2005 to 2011. He is also a director of Pontefract Racecourse and an active racehorse owner/breeder in...

Rose Paterson, chairman of Aintree Racecourse, has died suddenly. Paterson's husband, Conservative former cabinet minister Owen Paterson, said, "It is with great sadness that I must inform you that my wife, Rose, has been found dead at our family home in Shropshire," he said. "Rose and I were married for 40 happy years. She was a wonderful, caring wife, mother and grandmother. Her death has come as a terrible shock to us all. I would ask the media to respect the privacy of myself and my family at this extremely...