Britain's youngest trainer Chelsea Banham saddles first runner at 20

Britain's youngest trainer will be in action at Yarmouth on Wednesday when 20-year-old Chelsea Banham saddles her first runner.

Banham was granted a licence to train last month having spent the previous year as assistant to Paul Howling at a self-contained yard near Newmarket, and sends out Makambe in the 1m2f handicap (6.15).

Her stables, Mulligan's Yard, were formerly part of John Ferguson’s successful Bloomfields jumps operation and are owned by her father Gary Banham, a haulier who was the subject of an indefinite exclusion order in 2011 in the wake of the Sabre Light corruption inquiry, which led to trainer Jeff Pearce and former trainer Geoff Huffer being warned off.

Chelsea Banham said on Tuesday: "It's a big opportunity for me. Not many people my age get the opportunity to do this but I've worked with Alan Bailey for a year and then with Paul.

"The last year has gone really well with Paul and it’s great the owner has stayed here with the horse. I'm hoping for a big run although ideally the ground would have been a bit easier."

Makambe will be ridden by Banham’s partner Joey Haynes, and the trainer is undeterred by the prospect of entering into racing at such a young age.

"Pressures come with any job, that's the way it is, but I've not run into any problems and I absolutely love it," she said. "People will have different views on things but I'm using it as a positive and hope people will see it the same way.”

Until Banham was granted a licence, she had been assisting Howling after he was brought in last September to act as mentor to the aspiring trainer.

The roles have now been reversed, and Howling said: "We’ve been working together for a year and I'll be staying on as assistant. She's a great girl, works very hard and I'd love to see her do well.

"When you meet her you wouldn't think she was as young as she is. She's very mature, very focused and thinks things through thoroughly."

The connection of Gary Banham, whose exclusion order was lifted in June 2015, to a training yard was not considered to be an integrity risk by the BHA after assurances were given to the governing body.

Robin Mounsey, the BHA's head of communications, said last year: "The terms of Banham's application to lift the exclusion were seen to be sufficient, in the independent disciplinary officer's view, to protect racing's integrity.

"Banham has not asked, been permitted, nor has consideration been given to him returning to racing in the capacity of a licensed or registered person. He simply requested for the exclusion to be lifted."

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