Olly Murphy: 'I know I'm in a very privileged position - when I started out people were desperate for me to fall flat on my face'
Lewis Porteous meets a trainer who has had to learn the art of patience
It is a bracing but beautiful morning at Olly Murphy's Warren Chase Stables in Warwickshire and the man in charge has more reasons than most to be feeling the cold.
Back in his natural habitat for the first time after a January break in Dubai, Murphy finds memories of the luxury of the Jumeirah Beach Hotel and temperatures nudging 30C fading fast as news of one frozen-off fixture after another reaches his hyperactive phone.
This is no time to feel melancholy, however. With 126 horses to be marshalled and owners to greet, the show goes on here and there is definitely a glass-half-full mentality about the place. Given Murphy's beloved Aston Villa are riding high in the Premier League at the same time the 32-year-old has elbowed his way into the top ten in the trainers' championship, why shouldn't there be?
Read the full story
Read award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing, with exclusive news, interviews, columns, investigations, stable tours and subscriber-only emails.
Subscribe to unlock
- Racing Post digital newspaper (worth over £100 per month)
- Award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing
- Expert tips from the likes of Tom Segal and Paul Kealy
- Replays and results analysis from all UK and Irish racecourses
- Form study tools including the Pro Card and Horse Tracker
- Extensive archive of statistics covering horses, trainers, jockeys, owners, pedigree and sales data
Already a subscriber?Log in
Published on 20 January 2024inThe Big Read
Last updated 18:07, 20 January 2024
- 'There's a time to be serious because it's a multi-million-pound business - but you've got to have a laugh'
- Internal unrest and financial blows: is there a crisis brewing at the Jockey Club?
- 'There was a moment of rage - but he's a magnificent horse and it suits me that he's passed under the radar'
- Richard Hannon: 'When you're dead and buried the only things you're remembered by are your Classic winners'
- 'I'd try to join in with the kids playing football and the pain would shoot up my leg - it wasn't a good place to be'
- 'There's a time to be serious because it's a multi-million-pound business - but you've got to have a laugh'
- Internal unrest and financial blows: is there a crisis brewing at the Jockey Club?
- 'There was a moment of rage - but he's a magnificent horse and it suits me that he's passed under the radar'
- Richard Hannon: 'When you're dead and buried the only things you're remembered by are your Classic winners'
- 'I'd try to join in with the kids playing football and the pain would shoot up my leg - it wasn't a good place to be'