Paul Hanagan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Paul Hanagan |
|
|---|---|
Paul Hanagan winning UAE 2,000 Guineas on Soft Falling Rain
|
|
| Occupation | Jockey |
| Born | 8 September 1980 Warrington, Cheshire |
| Major racing wins | |
| British Classic Race wins: Epsom Oaks (1) |
|
| Racing awards | |
| British flat racing Champion Jockey 2010, 2011 | |
| Significant horses | |
| Mayson, Soft Falling Rain, Wootton Bassett, Taghrooda | |
Paul Hanagan, born on September 8, 1980, in Warrington, England, is a famous British jockey. He was a top flat racing jockey, meaning he rode horses in races on flat tracks. Paul won the title of British Champion Jockey twice, in 2010 and 2011.
During his 25-year career, he won ten very important races called Group 1 races. One of his biggest wins was the Epsom Oaks. For most of his career, from 1999 to 2022, he rode for trainer Richard Fahey. He stopped riding in races in August 2023.
Contents
Paul Hanagan's Early Life and Career
Paul Hanagan went to the British Racing School to learn how to be a jockey. He first sat on a horse when he was 14 years old. Before that, he wanted to be a professional football player. But he was told he was too small and light for football.
His dad, Geoff, loved horse racing and used to ride horses for fun. Paul remembers realizing he wanted to be a jockey when he was about 11. He said it felt like a "bug" that got him hooked.
Paul started helping out at a horse yard in Warrington. He rode horses there for the first time at age 14. After finishing school, he went to the British Racing School in 1997.
His first job in racing was with trainer Malcolm Jefferson. Malcolm gave Paul his first race ride on a horse named Stone Beck. This happened at Haydock Park on September 4, 1998.
A year later, Paul joined trainer Richard Fahey's growing stable in Malton. He started there as an apprentice jockey.
Becoming a Champion Apprentice
Paul's career quickly took off. In 2002, he became the British flat racing Champion Apprentice. This means he was the best young jockey learning the ropes that year. He rode 81 winners, which was a huge number for an apprentice.
After winning this title, Paul thanked his boss, Richard Fahey. He said, "Without him, I wouldn’t be where I am today."
In 2002, Paul also won a big race called the John Smith's Cup at York. His trainer, Richard Fahey, was so impressed that he said Paul would one day be a champion jockey.
Reaching 100 Wins
In 2004, Paul Hanagan achieved a big goal: he rode 100 winners in one year. This was something he had dreamed of since he started as an apprentice.
One of his wins that year was the historic Northumberland Plate at Newcastle. This win was very important to Paul. It happened just after he had faced a ban for not riding his horses correctly in some races.
The year 2004 was also special because Paul earned over £1 million in prize money for the first time.
Becoming Champion Jockey
Richard Fahey had predicted that Paul would become a champion jockey. But it was a big challenge for a jockey based in the north of England. Only two other northern jockeys had won the title in over 100 years.
However, Paul's stable with Richard Fahey became very strong. Paul started the 2010 season with four wins on the first day. He stayed ahead of everyone else in the race for the title. He finished the year with 191 winners from over 1,100 rides.
After winning the title on November 6, 2010, Paul said he owed a lot to Richard Fahey. He had been with Fahey for 14 years. He also said, "It sounds great being champion jockey, I think it will take a while to sink in."
One special horse helped Paul win his first championship. This was a two-year-old horse named Wootton Bassett. This horse won all five of its races in 2010 with Paul riding. One of these wins was the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère in France. This was Paul's first ever Group 1 win.
A year later, Paul won the championship again in 2011. He beat another jockey named Silvestre De Sousa by just four wins. Paul finished with 165 winners. He said keeping the title felt like "a big relief."
After winning two titles in a row, Paul hinted that he might not try for the title again in 2012. He said he needed to take a break. Paul became the first northern jockey to win the flat championship more than once.
Later Career and Retirement
Paul's hopes for a third championship did not come true. In 2012, he started riding for a new owner, Sheikh Hamdan. This owner had a horse named Taghrooda. In 2014, Taghrooda gave Paul his first and only Classic race win in the Epsom Oaks.
That same year, Paul and Taghrooda also won another big race, the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot. Paul won seven Group 1 races for Sheikh Hamdan. They stopped working together in 2016, and Paul returned to ride for Richard Fahey.
In 2018, Paul and Fahey had another Group 1 win with a horse called Sands Of Mali. This was in the British Champions Sprint Stakes at Ascot.
In February 2020, Paul had a fall at Newcastle and broke some bones in his back. But he bravely returned to riding later that year. In November 2020, he rode his 2000th winner in Britain at the same racecourse.
In 2021 and 2022, Paul and Fahey won the Group 2 Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot two years in a row. They won with horses named Perfect Power and The Ridler.
On August 25, 2023, Paul Hanagan announced he was stopping his career as a jockey. His very last race was two days later at the Ebor Festival.
Personal Life
Paul Hanagan is married to Anna, and they have two sons.
Major Wins
- Great Britain
- British Champions Sprint Stakes – (2) – Muhaarar (2015), Sands of Mali (2018)
- Eclipse Stakes – (1) – Mukhadram (2014)
- July Cup – (2) – Mayson (2011), Muhaarar (2015)
- King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes – (1) – Taghrooda (2014)
- Oaks Stakes – (1) – Taghrooda (2014)
- France
- Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère – (1) – Wootton Bassett (2010)
- Prix Maurice de Gheest – (1) – Muhaarar (2015)
- UAE
- Dubai Golden Shaheen – (1) Muarrab (2016)
