'Henry was fighting cancer but that wasn't a detriment to his training of Frankel - it may even have been a positive'

It is a question that can never be definitively answered. As a racehorse, Frankel may or may not have been the greatest of all time. We can, however, say with absolute certainty he is The People's Champion, a Racing Post poll having placed him above four celebrated rivals. Yet no matter how much acclaim and adulation we send the mighty one's way, it cannot be denied he makes one heck of a mess with a carrot.

Fantastically bright sunshine is showing an equine work of art in all his magnificent glory. Frankel, the unbeaten and perhaps unbeatable athlete who scaled outrageous heights during three unforgettable seasons, is basking in stunning autumn weather at his Banstead Manor Stud home. He poses in front of us, demanding to be admired like a masterpiece on a gallery wall. We have been permitted, even encouraged, to stand right beside him, to stroke his gleaming coat, to pat his powerful neck. It is a pleasure, a privilege, a thrill.

None of this interaction bothers him, even after he has devoured the second of two carrots offered up by Lady Cecil, who has maintained the regular visits to Banstead made by her late husband over a sadly all too short time. It was Sir Henry Cecil who directed the story of Frankel's career. It was the legendary and much-loved master of Warren Place who found in Galileo's son the perfect partner for his own last hurrah. As those who nominated Frankel as their favourite racehorse so consistently said, it is impossible to separate one from the other. This mission to salute The People's Champion has confirmed that Frankel and Cecil truly were, and remain, an unstoppable force.