In 1982 he won the Grand National as the 7/1 favourite being ridden by amateur jockey Dick Saunders, who at the age of 48 became, and remains, the oldest jockey to have won the Grand National.
Grittar was a bay gelding bred in the United Kingdom by Frank H Gilman. He was owned and trained by Gilman and resided in Rutland.
Racing careeredit
And it's 48 year old Dick Saunders on Grittar from Hard Outlook. Grittar strides into the final furlong and is already being acclaimed as the National Hero of 1982. Frank Gilman's Grittar strides up to the line to win it in fantastic style, ear's pricked, he's a fresh horse. Grittar wins the National!
In 1981 Grittar won the Cheltenham and Liverpool Foxhunters and Gilman decided he should be entered in the National the following year.
In preparation for the National, he won at a canter at Leicester before finishing a creditable sixth in the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Grittar was installed as a 7/1 favourite on the day of the 1982 Grand National race, due mostly to the Foxhunter Chase double in 1981.[2] The victory at Liverpool was enough for him to get the support of BBC Radio Two commentator, Peter Bromley[3] though several newspaper pundits expressed concern at the horse being a hunter chaser. Forty-eight-year-old amateur rider Dick Saunders told trainer Frank Gilman to employ the services of a professional rider, Peter Scudamore for the big race, but Gilman insisted Saunders take the ride if fit. His age and amateur status did little to deter the betting public although leading professional gambler, Alex Bird commented "I immediately pencilled him in for the '82 National, but I'm not happy about the jockey - I'll be keeping my money in my pocket."[4]
Grittar had a virtually trouble free run beating the other 7 finishers by 15 lengths with Saunders retiring immediately after the race and becoming chairman of the Aintree stewards.
Grittar ran in two more Nationals. In 1983 he finished 5th behind Corbiere and the following year ridden by John Francome he finished 10th to Hallo Dandy.
^Belfast Telegraph, April 2nd 1982, page 26, "Catch the post with Royal Mail. {Grittar is a big danger}"
^Liverpool Echo, April 2nd 1982, Page 3, "Grittar gets the bird for big one."
^"Grittar pedigree". sporthorse-data.com. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
January 01, 1970
grittar, 1973, 1998, british, bred, thoroughbred, racehorse, competed, national, hunt, racing, siregrisailledamtaramadamsiretamerlanesexgeldingfoaled1973, countryunited, kingdomcolourbaybreederfrank, gilmanownerfrank, gilmantrainerfrank, gilmanmajor, winsgrand. Grittar 1973 1998 was a British bred Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in National Hunt racing GrittarSireGrisailleDamTaramaDamsireTamerlaneSexGeldingFoaled1973 1 CountryUnited KingdomColourBayBreederFrank H GilmanOwnerFrank H GilmanTrainerFrank H GilmanMajor winsGrand National 1982 In 1982 he won the Grand National as the 7 1 favourite being ridden by amateur jockey Dick Saunders who at the age of 48 became and remains the oldest jockey to have won the Grand National Contents 1 Background 2 Racing career 3 Grand National record 4 Pedigree 5 ReferencesBackground editGrittar was a bay gelding bred in the United Kingdom by Frank H Gilman He was owned and trained by Gilman and resided in Rutland Racing career editAnd it s 48 year old Dick Saunders on Grittar from Hard Outlook Grittar strides into the final furlong and is already being acclaimed as the National Hero of 1982 Frank Gilman s Grittar strides up to the line to win it in fantastic style ear s pricked he s a fresh horse Grittar wins the National BBC Commentator Peter O Sullevan describes the climax of the 1982 National In 1981 Grittar won the Cheltenham and Liverpool Foxhunters and Gilman decided he should be entered in the National the following year In preparation for the National he won at a canter at Leicester before finishing a creditable sixth in the Cheltenham Gold Cup Grittar was installed as a 7 1 favourite on the day of the 1982 Grand National race due mostly to the Foxhunter Chase double in 1981 2 The victory at Liverpool was enough for him to get the support of BBC Radio Two commentator Peter Bromley 3 though several newspaper pundits expressed concern at the horse being a hunter chaser Forty eight year old amateur rider Dick Saunders told trainer Frank Gilman to employ the services of a professional rider Peter Scudamore for the big race but Gilman insisted Saunders take the ride if fit His age and amateur status did little to deter the betting public although leading professional gambler Alex Bird commented I immediately pencilled him in for the 82 National but I m not happy about the jockey I ll be keeping my money in my pocket 4 Grittar had a virtually trouble free run beating the other 7 finishers by 15 lengths with Saunders retiring immediately after the race and becoming chairman of the Aintree stewards Grittar ran in two more Nationals In 1983 he finished 5th behind Corbiere and the following year ridden by John Francome he finished 10th to Hallo Dandy Grittar died aged 25 in Leicestershire citation needed Grand National record editGrand National Position Jockey Age Weight SP Distance 1982 1st Dick Saunders 9 11 5 7 1 F Won by 15 lengths 1983 5th Paul Barton 10 11 12 6 1 1984 10th John Francome 11 11 10 12 1Pedigree editPedigree of Grittar GB bay gelding 1973 5 SireGrisaille GB 1965 Grey Sovereign GB 1948 Nasrullah GB Nearco ITY Mumtaz Begum Kong GB Baytown Clang Goyamora FRA 1954 Goyama FRA Goya II Devineress Temora FRA Tourbillon Pharyva DamTarama GB 1965 Tamerlane GB 1952 Persian Gulf GB Bahram GB Double Life IRE Eastern Empress GB Nearco ITY Cheveley Lady Confection GB 1948 Fun Fair GB Fair Trial GB Humoresque Choclo GB Blandford AthasiReferences edit Grittar profile Racing Post Retrieved 10 April 2021 Grittar 1982 Grand National 11 March 2010 Belfast Telegraph April 2nd 1982 page 26 Catch the post with Royal Mail Grittar is a big danger Liverpool Echo April 2nd 1982 Page 3 Grittar gets the bird for big one Grittar pedigree sporthorse data com Retrieved 11 April 2021 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Grittar amp oldid 1222017342, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
