Marquand seeks icing on cake after season of mission accomplished

It’s the sort of day Tom Marquand has envisaged for much of his life. In Who Dares Wins, he has a fancied mount in a big race on a televised Saturday card. Victory would further propel him up a career ladder that many judges believe he will climb to the very top.

For one who is still only 19, Marquand has already attracted plenty of media interest. It is in keeping with his rapid upward trajectory, which saw him make the final three for the BBC’s Young Sports Personality of the Year Award in 2015. A great deal has come his way in a short time.

This is Marquand’s first full season outside the apprentice ranks and he has consolidated where many young pretenders have hit the rocks. His progress has been pleasingly unspectacular. Only the likes of Lester Piggott, Pat Eddery and Frankie Dettori advance from apprentice to master in the blink of an eye. It is no bad thing that Marquand has been able to pause for breath.