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A talented former racehorse who enjoyed show ring success after he left the track is now turning his hoof to a third career.
Jack The Giant, who notched up nine wins under rules, both on the Flat and over jumps, returned to Cheltenham on Saturday (14 January) for his debut British Dressage competition, with Clare Poole.
The 15-year-old won both his novice classes, in the racecourse’s indoor arena, with scores of 68% and 69%.
“He is such a lovely horse, quite a character and he tries his heart out,” Clare said.
“He did so well on his dressage debut, impressing the judges and finishing with fantastic percentages.
“He shows the great versatility of the thoroughbred and I am so proud to have him here.”
Jack The Giant amassed nearly £250,000 in prize money during his racing career, during which he was trained by Barry Hills on the Flat and Nicky Henderson over jumps.
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He then moved on to showing, winning the National Hunt category of the Retraining of Racehorses (RoR) elite show series championship in 2014. The same year, he qualified at Burghley for the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS), where he finished fourth.
The following year, he was crowned RoR elite show series supreme champion and in 2016, he won the SEIB racehorse to riding horse championship at HOYS. He was also last year presented with an RoR special recognition award for his showing achievements.
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His owners the Jackpot Syndicate then announced his retirement from the show ring and sent him to Clare, who specialises in retraining former racehorses.
A statement from the syndicate said: “He’s a terrific horse, who has given us all so much pleasure and Clare will make sure he continues to enjoy his new life.”
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Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.