 Tony McCoy, wife Chanelle and daughter Eve enjoy the day |
Tony McCoy was presented with the champion jockey title for the 15th year on the trot at Sandown on Saturday. The 35-year-old Northern Irishman capped another record-breaking season with his first victory in the Grand National, on Don't Push It. He just missed 200 season winners and took his career total past 3,000. The tireless teetotal jockey has little time to rest as he begins his mission for a 16th title at Ludlow on Sunday when the 2010-11 campaign starts. Meanwhile, Rhys Flint clinched the conditional jockeys' championship when he won the opener at Market Rasen on Saturday.  | 606: DEBATE |
Among other big racing names to be honoured with awards at Sandown were Paul Nicholls (champion trainer) and JP McManus (champion owner). McCoy also won the people's award for his ride on Don't Push It in the Grand National, while the trainer he so often rides for, Jonjo O'Neill, won the Sandown Park merit award for outstanding contribution to racing. Albertas Run, whose three wins included the Ryanair Chase at Cheltenham and the Melling Chase at Aintree, was the Order of Merit winner. McCoy narrowly failed in his quest for 200 winners this campaign, ending with 195, and his daughter Eve joined him on stage as he collected his trophy from rugby icon Brian Moore. "It was most difficult in the run up to Christmas because I had not had an awful lot of luck," said the champion. "But the last six weeks have been amazing. It is what every jockey wants and dreams of. "I'd had a lot of failures in the Grand National so to win it was a dream come true. "I was in quite good company with the likes of John Francome and Peter Scudamore, who hadn't won it either, but to do it was something very special. "The whole emotion from the 70,000 people at Aintree was amazing." Champion trainer Paul Nicholls failed to match his record-breaking 155 winners of 12 months earlier but was still crowned champion trainer for the fifth year running with 115 wins and prize money of £2.8m. "I'm very lucky to be in this position. It has been a fantastic five years," said the Somerset-based trainer.
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