Rachael Blackmore will receive the 2021 Irish Racing Hero Award at the annual Horse Racing Ireland Awards next month. It will cap of a phenomenal 2021 for the Tipperary rider who became the first woman to claim the leading jockey award at the Cheltenham Festival after remarkably riding six winners.
A week later Blackmore went on to ride the winner of the Grand National at Aintree.
🌟 Rachael Blackmore wins HRI’s 2021 Irish Racing Hero Award 🌟
Her pioneering exploits at the Cheltenham Festival and at Aintree went hand-in-hand with unprecedented success for Irish-trained, Irish-ridden and Irish-bred horses 🏇
Read More 👉 https://t.co/1dTlKrdwvV pic.twitter.com/hKUWVXp0lf
— Horse Racing Ireland (@HRIRacing) November 10, 2021
Suzanne Eade, interim CEO of Horse Racing Ireland, said: “Rachael’s achievements on two of jump racing’s biggest stages are truly historic.
“Not only was she the first woman to ride the winner of a championship race at Cheltenham, but Rachael also became the first woman to win the Leading Jockey award at the festival. It is remarkable that her six winners included five at Grade 1 level.
“Her Aintree Grand National victory made headlines all over the world and that accomplishment alone will resonate with so many within the racing industry and beyond.
“Rachael has become more than a role model; she is a true icon of our wonderful sport and a most fitting winner of the 2021 Irish Racing Hero Award.”
Earlier this month, Blackmore returned from an injury lay off which kept her out for over three months. Last week, she was back to her best as she rode a total of five winners in Nass and Navan.
