How I won the Gold Cup - only to end the day being rushed to hospital
Lewis Porteous speaks to the man who rode Garrison Savannah to Gold Cup glory
Mark Pitman tends not to dwell on the past but as the 30th anniversary of the day he won the Cheltenham Gold Cup approaches, it is amazing how vividly he can recall a fraught build-up, dream ride and unthinkable aftermath when he puts his mind to it.
For the son of training legend Jenny Pitman, the Gold Cup has always been the zenith.
"I'd have given my left arm to win a National but if I had to pick one of the two, it would be the Gold Cup," says Pitman from his home on the outskirts of Lambourn, where he still looks after racehorses for loyal supporters like Malcolm Denmark and Stewart Andrew when they are out of training. "It was the race I always wanted to win."
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 2 March 2021inInterviews
Last updated 16:16, 2 March 2021
Copy- 'All of us who ply our trade training horses are dreamers - to put so much into it you must have a dream'
- 'There was a moment of rage - but he's a magnificent horse and it suits me that he's passed under the radar'
- When Patrick Mullins met Jack Kennedy: 'You could say I've been lucky - they're just broken bones and they heal'
- Richard Hannon: 'When you're dead and buried the only things you're remembered by are your Classic winners'
- Paul Carberry: 'I jumped up on to the rafters. It tended to be all very strait-laced in those days, but I changed that'
- 'All of us who ply our trade training horses are dreamers - to put so much into it you must have a dream'
- 'There was a moment of rage - but he's a magnificent horse and it suits me that he's passed under the radar'
- When Patrick Mullins met Jack Kennedy: 'You could say I've been lucky - they're just broken bones and they heal'
- Richard Hannon: 'When you're dead and buried the only things you're remembered by are your Classic winners'
- Paul Carberry: 'I jumped up on to the rafters. It tended to be all very strait-laced in those days, but I changed that'