Racing legend Vincent O’Brien dies

In the week of the Epsom Derby, Vincent O'Brien, the legendary Irish trainer who won the race six times between 1962 and 1982, has died aged 92 at his home in County Kildare. He was voted the greatest Flat trainer of the 20th century.

What made him special, however, was that he was also voted the greatest National Hunt trainer of the century having won the Cheltenham Gold Cup three years in succession with Cottage Rake (1948, '49 and '50) and trained three Grand National winners before he turned to Flat racing.

As his daughter, Sue Magnier, said in a statement issued yesterday: "Dad's racing career speaks for itself and needs no elaboration."

In the 1970s, O'Brien teamed up with his son-in-law John Magnier and the pools tycoon Robert Sangster to establish the Coolmore syndicate in County Tipperary. They were a dynamic trio whose fortunes rested on O'Brien's knack for spotting great horses.

One such was the American stallion Northern Dancer. Two of the Derby winners trained at O'Brien's Ballydoyle stable were sons of Northern Dancer - Nijinsky (1970) and The Minstrel (1977), both of them ridden by his stable jockey Lester Piggott.

O'Brien retired in 1994 having conjured one of racing's most poignant victories at the 1990 Breeders' Cup Mile in the United States. The race was held only days after Piggott finished a three-year jail term for tax evasion. O'Brien persuaded Piggott to come out of retirement to ride Royal Academy in the American race. Piggott, 54 years old, rode a perfect race to win by a neck.

Today Ballydoyle is run by Aidan O'Brien, no relation but a huge fan of his namesake. Paying tribute to Vincent O'Brien yesterday, Aidan said: "I feel the sense of history every morning when I walk into the yard. It is humbling to follow in his footsteps."

It is a testament to Vincent O'Brien that of the 13 colts due to run in the Derby on Saturday, six are trained at Ballydoyle. ·