Sunday 13th April 2014 - Tragedy and Ecstasy

Tragedy and Ecstasy

It is said time and time again, but the sport of horse racing is loved for its unpredictability. National hunt racing in particular, contains the components of life- failure, success, tragedy and ecstasy. The stories that echo those sentiments fail to relent; it’s a continuous, captivating cycle: fans embrace its addiction, becoming embroiled in the sport for lifetimes, generations and beyond… I find this a remarkably powerful thing. The human race resents its own failure, yet in this case attaches itself to a never-ending spiral of fluctuation and considers it entertainment. Horse racing does not always deliver. Yet the days in which it shines through, silencing the pugnacious eyes in which it’s scrutinised, it unites the entirety of its community and makes history proud. This is something every racing fan bathes in- the days where cruelty vanishes and we can be happy to say this is our sport. This write-up is dedicated to everyone in racing, or anyone who has experienced its precious drug-like qualities along with its agonising pain.

Lucinda Russell appeared on Channel 4’s Morning Line at 8:00 on Saturday. Lucinda trains over 100 horses in Kinross with her partner Peter Scudamore, the previous champion jockey. On the 25^th June 2012, the racing world said goodbye to her stable jockey, Campbell Gillies, due to a truly tragic holiday incident in Corfu. At only 22 years old Campbell’s death suspended the industry in shock, he held such promise and was sure to be a prominent character in the future of National Hunt racing. To this day, often jockeys will reiterate their sadness and praise the short-lived yet vibrant life of this Haddington born sportsman. Gillies isn’t and won’t be the only figure who has left the world and our sport pre-maturely, of course, yet Lucinda’s recondition on Saturday inspired me to write this piece.

Racing isn’t racing without the horses- everyone knows that. Call it coincidence that in the March of 2012 Russell saddled Brindisi Breeze to win the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle at the prestigious haven that is regarded as the best show on turf- The Cheltenham Festival. Prior to Gillies’ death, the victory gifted Lucinda and Campbell with the biggest success thus far of their careers. Before the youthful pair could re-unite on the race course, the 19^th of May bought the team yet more devastation. 2:30am dawned and Brindisi Breeze escaped from his paddock and was sickeningly hit by a tanker. He died immediately.

 

Lucinda quoted:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Racing is characterised by its downfalls and strengths, as is everything. On Saturday I was personally, truly touched by how Lucinda projected herself in front of the Channel 4 cameras. She addressed what must have been a devastating period of time for her with real dignity. She approached the subject of her losses with great sadness, only recently (December 2013) she lost another of her stable stars, Silver By Nature. Yet she showed her undying passion for the sport in previewing the chances of her 3 horses that were to contest Scotland’s greatest steeplechase that afternoon. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be for Lucinda and racing wrote a different heart-warming story from the hoof beats and the hands of another man and another horse.
 

I am hopeful that racing will do what it often does and pay compensation to those impacted by its fateful hand, yet in reality- no one knows. It was with immense sadness that I recalled these events, yet I did so with a purpose. To prove that racing is powerful. Horses pass, jockeys pass, and the sport and the lives in which are lived within it, live on. Lucinda Russell and all associated with the talented pairing of Campbell Gillies and Brindisi Breeze have showed tremendous strength, and I thank them for staying loyal to horse racing, as these people make it what it is. This piece may be 2 years too late, but I felt it fitting to demonstrate to racing fans how incredible members of our family really are.

 

RIP Campbell Gillies and Brindisi Breeze