The plunge from 33-1 to 8-1 that gave Richard Hannon a first winner 50 years ago

It was the first of many. It was actually the first of very many. It was Newbury, the horse was a speedy two-year-old and trainer Richard Hannon was a winner for the first time. Hard as it is to believe, the 50th anniversary of that success arrived on Friday.

There was no big party, partly because the man who would have been at the centre of celebrations prefers not to dwell on deeds done but rather concentrate on what might still be achieved. The main reason, however, is the five-time champion trainer is self-isolating with wife Jo. It's an existence that makes him bored. Five decades ago there was no time to be bored, nor could he afford boredom, either.

These days we call him Richard Hannon senior to differentiate him from the man we used to call Richard Hannon junior. At Newbury on Friday, April 17, 1970, Junior was still five years and seven months away from entering the world. By the time he burst on the scene, so had his father, thanks to the 1973 2,000 Guineas triumph of Mon Fils. Three years before that, another generational switch had taken place.