The Queen has made £7.6m racing fortune – but Grand National frustrates her

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Queen Elizabeth is still yet to breed a Grand National winner despite amassing a huge winnings total from other races through the decades.

Horses have played a huge role in the monarch's life – she learned to ride as a toddler after receiving a Shetland pony named Peggy as a gift from her father, King George VI. When he died in 1952, and she became ruler in his place, she also inherited his breeding stables.

She also took on a racing stock, and has had tremendous success through the decades since. Horses owned and bred by the Queen's stables have racked up more than 1,600 race victories across all classes, helping her to amass a huge winnings total of £7.6m.

Her favourite event is undoubtedly Royal Ascot, having attended the meet almost without fail during every single year of her long reign. The only exception came in 2020, when she skipped the event amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Perhaps her liking for Ascot is down in part to the amount of success her horses have had there. Races at the event have been won by horses from her stables on 71 occasions since she ascended to the throne 70 years ago.

Part of the success of the Queen's horses in recent times comes from her strong relationship with trainer Monty Roberts. Also known as 'The Horse Whisperer', he has been in charge of training since 1989 and is so well-liked by Her Majesty that she once named a corgi after him.

While Royal Ascot has been the favourite event, the Queen has bred winners at every single British Classic race – every one, that is, except for this weekend's showpiece. Up to now, the Grand National top prize has eluded the monarch, according to BritishRacecourses.org.

The closest she came was in 1956, when Devon Loch stretched out a five-length lead over his nearest rival and looked certain to be first past the post. Inexplicably, however, the horse fell on the final straight just 40 yards from the finish line, and bad luck has pursued the Queen at Aintree ever since.

  • Horse racing
  • Grand National
  • HMS Queen Elizabeth
  • Royal Ascot

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