These days Irish horses dominate jump racing, while one of the finest Derby winners of recent years was Sea The Stars. Now, author Brian O’Connor selects a dozen truly great Irish Horses of the last 100 years of racing history from Orby, the first horse to be trained in Ireland to win the Epsom Derby in 1907. There is Arkle’s almost unearthly performances, together with the other jumping greats including Dawn Run, Flyingbolt, Istabraq, Monksfield and Moscow Flyer. It has Alleged, “the forgotten horse” who won back-to-back victories under Lester Piggott in the Prix de L’Arc de Triomphe. There is Nijinsky, Vintage Crop, Sinndar and of course Sea The Stars.
Witty, biting, and formidably well-informed, ‘Ireland’s Greatest Racehorses’ is a hugely enjoyable celebration of some of the finest racehorses of all time and is as much about the people that shaped their lives as it is about the horses. Hardback.