Ryan Moore
Ryan Moore is part of a racing dynasty founded by his late grandfather, Charlie, a used-car salesman who became a trainer, and now headed by his father, Gary, a trainer and former jump jockey. His brothers, Jamie and Joshua, are both current jump jockeys and his sister, Hayley, was a leading amateur rider before turning her hand to television presenting, on the Sky Sports Racing TV channel.
In 2001, at the age of 18, Moore was apprenticed to trainer Richard Hannon Snr. in Marlborough, Wiltshire. With the support of the man who would become, at the time of his retirement in November, 2013, the most prolific trainer in the history of British horse racing, Moore became Champion Apprentice in 2003, with 52 winners, and Champion Jockey in 2006, with 182 winners. Three months on the sidelines with a broken wrist in 2007 put paid to any further jockeys’ title aspirations, at least temporarily, but at the end of the year Moore was appointed stable jockey to Sir Michael Stoute in Newmarket, Suffolk.
Under the auspices of the ten-time Champion Trainer, Moore became Champion Jockey again in 2008, and in 2009, and the following season won his first British Classics. In fact, that year he completed the Derby – Oaks double on Workforce, trained by Stoute, and Snow Fairy, trained by Ed Dunlop. Further Classic success followed, in the 1,000 Guineas, on Homecoming Queen, in 2012 and the Derby, on Ruler Of The World, in 2013. Both those winners were trained by Aidan O’Brien and, in April, 2015, it was announced that Moore would ride the ‘main horses’ for Ballydoyle. Since that appointment, Moore has ridden six more British Classic winners, all bar one for Aidan O’Brien.
A softly spoken, perhaps even reticent, individual, Moore is nonetheless technically excellent, tactically astute and, arguably, one of the best, if not the best, jockeys in the world. He is one of just four British-based jockeys still riding to feature in the all-time top twenty, but his horsemanship, courage and timing have been seen throughout the racing world, including Europe, North America and the Far East.