Davy Russell announced his shock retirement after riding Liberty Dance to win at Thurles. Check out his blog, wife, age & many more here
Davy Russell : Retired | Wife | Tiger roll | Blog | Age
Russell is an Irish National Hunt jockey. He has been Irish jump racing Champion Jockey three times, and has won the Grand National (twice), the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris.
| Born | 27 June 1979 Youghal, County Cork, Ireland |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Jockey |
His father owned a few racehorses and the family walked puppies for the local hunt.
As a child Russell’s passions were riding his pony, hurling, and helping his father with his horses.
Russell rode for four years as an amateur in point-to-points in Ireland, winning his first race in February 1999. During this period he also went hunting and worked in a fish factory.
Davy Russell Retired
Davy Russell has retired from race-riding after celebrating a final winner on home turf.
The 43-year-old, who struck aboard Liberty Dance at Thurles, has been a professional jockey for over 20 years and was named Irish jumps champion on three occasions.
Announcing he was calling time on his career in the saddle, he said in a statement: “My journey began 43 years ago with the support of my parents who gave me the most outstanding childhood – never restricting me and giving me the freedom to begin my journey.
My mother is no longer here but she has always had my back – I still feel her watching over me today.”
In a stellar career, Russell took the 2014 Cheltenham Gold Cup on Lord Windermere and two renewals of Aintree’s Grand National on Tiger Roll.
He made the shock call to quit just a day after Frankie Dettori told his fans he would retire at the end of 2023.
Russell, who started out in point-to-points, is the most successful current jockey at the Cheltenham Festival, with 25 wins to his name. But over the years he battled many serious injuries and spent 11 months on the sidelines when Doctor Duffy fell in the 2020 Munster National.
Davy Russell wife
Russell is married to Edelle O’Meara, a science and maths teacher and former Irish pole vault champion.
The couple live in Youghal and have four children, Lily, Finn, Liam and Tess.
Russell grew up in a household that were heavily involved in horse racing.
Tiger roll
A horse of a lifetime for Russell, providing back-to-back victories in the Grand National to write the pair’s name firmly into Aintree legend.
The rider was also there at the very beginning for this gutsy little horse, with the duo lifting the 2014 Triumph Hurdle – the first of five Festival wins for Tiger Roll.
Russell certainly earned his only Cheltenham Gold Cup success as Lord Windermere was out the back and struggling at one stage, before staying on all the way up the run in to claim a short-head verdict.
While the victory was slightly controversial as the winner got very close with runner-up On His Own, it was a fine illustration of Russell’s strength and determination to get him home.
A potential superstar after back-to-back Festival wins in the Champion Bumper and the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle.
Blog
I don’t think we’re going to get any reaction to that fine performance in the bumper anytime soon as the Racing TV presenters are wrapping up; there weren’t too many tweets of the closing stages either but luckily you can watch the replay for free on Sporting Life.
As usual it’s been an enjoyable three days from Cheltenham with the action supplemented by some quality fare from Ireland.
One or two star names were missing today on account of the underfoot conditions but we’ve still seen some useful performances, not least in the two graded hurdles on either side of the Irish Sea.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised were Hercule De Seuil’s race worked out particularly well and it will be interesting to see if the first three home line-up at Cheltenham in March while the Sky Bet Supreme Trial also looks to be a useful bit of form and we should, hopefully, be hearing more about the horses who finished in the places at Cheltenham.
There’s plenty more water to go under the bridge before March though and hopefully some may even fall on the tracks. But for now, it’s goodbye from me.
Age
Russell was born David Niall Russell, the second youngest of six children, and raised on the farm of his parents Jerry and Phyllis Russell in Youghal, County Cork, Ireland .
- Age : 43 years.
His father owned a few racehorses and the family walked puppies for the local hunt.
As a child Russell’s passions were riding his pony, hurling, and helping his father with his horses.
Russell rode for four years as an amateur in point-to-points in Ireland, winning his first race in February 1999. During this period he also went hunting and worked in a fish factory.