Interest passed down the generations now extends to working life

In the 1980s my grandfather was fortunate enough to own a couple of decent jumps horses – Swifthussar and Coolnalira, who won at Warwick – until he retired them at home. Growing up I would often hear stories, read articles and smile at photos about how much he loved the sport and the horses.

That must have left quite an impression on me, as over the last four years or so my love of racing has grown from weekend fan into the relatively unhealthy obsession of watching up to 20 races a day, a daily subscription to the Racing Post and developing a Rain Man-like brain bursting with fairly pointless racehorse info.

That interest is outweighed only by my desire to forge a career in the industry. Last November I attended a careers course with the Thoroughbred Club at Tattersalls in Newmarket. I learned so much and even got to meet Frankel at Juddmonte Farms.