17.01.12 - THE GRAND NATIONAL

Kinane, Eddery, Maguire and Pitman boost 2012 line up for theJohn Smith's Aintree Legends Charity Race

13-time Irish Flat Champion Jockey and three time Derby-winning legend, Mick Kinane will have his first ride since retirement and is joined by 11-time Flat Champion jockey and another three time Derby-winner, Pat Eddery as they seek to prove that they can beat the jumps boys on their home turf! They line up with Richard Pitman, who aims to go one place better than in the 1973 Grand National and Adrian Maguire, 3rd on Moorcroft Boy in 1994 and winner of 1024 races in his career.

Tony Dobbin returns to defend his crown in the second John Smith’s Aintree Legends Race on Grand National Day, April 14th 2012.  The 2011 race celebrated the 30 year anniversary of Bob Champion’s fairy-tale win on Aldaniti in 1981 and raised well over £100,000 for The Bob Champion Cancer Trust. The race is run on the flat over 1m 5f as the first race on the John Smith’s Grand National card.

The full 2012 race line up is:
Richard Pitman (2nd on Crisp in 1973) Adrian Maguire (3rd on Moorcroft Boy in 1994) 
Pat Eddery (11-time Champion Jockey) Mick Kinane (13-time Irish Champion Jockey)
Ben De Haan (1983, Corbiere)  Hywel Davies (1985, Last Suspect)
Brendan Powell (1988, Rhyme n Reason) Jimmy Frost (1989, Little Polveir)  
Marcus Armytage (1990, Mr Frisk)   Carl Llewellyn (1992, Party Politics/1998, Earth Summit)
Tony Dobbin (1997, Lord Gyllene)     Jim Culloty (2002, Bindaree)

Bob Champion leads the team of Ambassadors for the race which will include the likes of Jonjo O’Neill, Richard Dunwoody, Mick Fitzgerald, Peter Scudamore and Josh Gifford.

Bob Champion says: “Last year’s race was a memorable day and we were thrilled that 30 years on from my unbelievable win on Aldaniti, we managed to raise so much money for The Bob Champion Cancer Trust.  This year we have another stellar line up and I hope people enjoy the spectacle again and continue support us to help reduce the odds against cancer.”

Adrian Maguire says: “I very much enjoyed watching Tony Dobbin winning the race last year and so am now very much looking forward to getting my chance back at Aintree, a track which has been very lucky for me in the past.”

Mick Kinane: “I’m really looking forward to riding at Aintree for the first time, as long as they don’t put a fence in front of me!”

On the fund-raising front, it will be possible to support and sponsor the individual jockeys at www.bobchampion.org.uk , www.grandnationallegends.com and via Facebook and Just Giving pages. Each jockey will link up with one of the many John Smith’s-supplied Clubs across the country in the build up to the race and will also post regular online updates about their preparation for the race.

Karen Crowley, Senior Brand Manager at John Smith’s said: “We are extremely excited about the second running of the John Smith’s Aintree Legends Race, it is sure to be a great opener to the John Smith's Grand National day card. We have an exceptional line up of jockeys this year and I look forward to following their progress over the next few months.”