Early bird on flight path to the top of the tree

He's not really a morning person, which makes it all the more admirable that he can turn up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed on the Opening Show every Saturday, the cheery outrider for the weekend's sport and the face that launches a thousand tips.

Oli Bell offers a slightly bashful smile, politely stifles a yawn, this being morning and a Monday to boot.

"The later slot compared to the Morning Line is very welcome," he says, grateful for the extra hour, a young man who takes himself just seriously enough, whose enthusiasm for his job and his sport spreads out to fill all the space available.