One Man - a portrait by Sue Wingate

During a month that sees the sun set on the last Grand National of this Millennium. Our eyes can look at the field of dreams that is Aintree Racecourse and reflect on one horse and what was and what might have been. The horse is One Man.

Trained by the late Gordon Richards to form a chapter in the history of the great national hunt horses; it is a little known fact that the legendary Master of Greystoke stables in Cumbria, Gordon W. Richards held a belief going back several years that 1999 would be the year his beloved One Man would go for the Grand National at the age of eleven. Yet as is so often the case in jump racing destiny plays a hand that can lift our spirits to the stars or plunge us into the depths of sadness. This perhaps describes that meteor that rocketed through jump racing in the form of a grey horse called One Man. While Aintree was to play a part in the destiny of One Man it was not to be Grand National glory. It was to be the place where the grey was to end his life in a fall in April 1998.

Perhaps no biographical account human or equine should commence with the end. Yet with One Man we have a debt to put right. A horse who should be recorded as a great horse. Not out of emotion or judgement clouded by tears from his untimely death. Rather from the joy of having the good fortune to have witnessed first hand his incredible achievements. No matter how we try we cannot change what is. Thus any racing follower owes it to One Man not to remember him with sadness , but to remember One Man with the joy we felt when we saw Gordon Richards "little rubber ball" leap those fences and gallop into the record books. Whilst superb publications such as Timeform are well able to debate the merits ,failings and comparisons of the great horses. I make no attempt to do this for you here.

This is the story of a Champion racehorse called One Man, told from the viewpoint of two of us who simply loved the horse. My own first encounter with One Man was watching him toddle home tenth in a Hexham hurdle , his first race under rules, a dark grey then unlike the white knight he was to become. I look at the note I wrote on the race card that day which says simply, "a nice sort will improve". Fair to say he did indeed improve. Ridden then and in several early races by Chris (Rambo) Grant he was trained at that time by the late W.A. (Arthur) Stephenson., having been bought from Tom Costello in Ireland. A runner up spot in his second race was soon followed by his first win under rules in the Burghley Novices Hurdle at Newcastle on October 21st 1992. Rambo always had One Man handy and he won with some ease. A step up to a trip of 3 and a quarter miles at Cheltenham in November 92 was to be a significant race for him as it was those undulations and gruelling hill that were to cause him so much unfair publicity in future years. He finished a well beaten third that day. Considering he was only and immature 4 year old perhaps one has to consider if such a marathon trip so young and so early in his career may well have left some mental scar on the horse.

A fortnight later One Man came back to 2 and a half miles at Newcastle. He was to fall when beaten in that race, which sadly proved to be his last run for Arthur Stephenson as this great trainer was to pass away not long after. Arthur's nephew Peter Cheeseborough took over the stables at Bishop Auckland and One Man continued his career under Peter's guidance.

January 93 saw the grey right back to his best with an effortless win under Chris Grant at Nottingham.. Again I had the privilege of seeing this glorious grey when he made his first Ayr raid. A hurdle over 2 and a half miles in February saw him winning doing hand springs. A significant day too for my own small son as this was the day he was to first meet the horse that was to become his hero.

A third at Aintree was followed by a second back at Ayr in April to the enigmatic Aahsaylad. A lasting memory of that day was seeing the late Gordon (the boss) Richards having a long good look at One Man after the race. With that unmistakable twinkle in his eye ,then Gordon's customary jaw squared in thought, a deep intake of breath and chest puffed out as he strutted away. Gordon liked what he saw in that horse. Not a word was spoken there was no need.

John Hales was an owner with the Boss principally of a store horse who would not see the track for quite some time. Keen to be involved in excitement of the racecourse John asked Gordon to buy him a horse to run that autumn. The dispersal sale of horses from Arthur Stephenson's yard was due to take place and both men made tracks to Bishop Auckland for the sale. John was especially interested in Lot 111, One Man. When the hammer fell it was to John Hales as the now owner of One Man on May 9th 1993. This was despite Gordons caution over the horses "big feet". Gordon knew a good 'un when he saw it though. He well remembered the words of his respected friend Arthur Stephenson " just wait till this 'orse sees the big black ones". A reference of course to steeplechase fences where One Man was indeed to peak.

The November of 93 saw a brilliant trainer, a top jockey and promising new stable inmate head for Ayr. As my son and I also set out from our Galloway home to be there for One Man's chase debut. No one was to be disappointed. The grey attacked his fences with all the flamboyance and courage you would expect from any first time fencer trained by Gordon Richards. There was something that day that took root in my mind and in many others, that this was not just a good horse but he was going to be great horse. A bad mistake off the home bend was handled with composure by Neale Doughty and when One Man came to take the last fence where I stood with my son he flew it like no fence had the right to stand in his way, going on to win in great style.

My young son and I walked over to the unsaddling area after the race and had a long good look as the grey was being walked round to cool down. "He's going to be a champion dad", the little fair haired lad said standing beside me gazing at his equine hero. We asked if my son could give the horse a pat and we were welcomed. Looking right into the eye of One Man I felt it then and I believe I saw it then. The eye of a great horse seldom seen in anyone's lifetime. We knew that we were in the privileged position of being right beside something very special a star just ascending. In those eyes in that brief moment I saw it, the pride , arrogance, and confidence of a "great". Also though there was kindness in the eyes of One Man. Only minutes earlier he had been attacking his fences with the power and aggression of a serious thoroughbred chaser. Yet now he was allowing a small boy to pet his muzzle and neck.

That cold November night one little boy knew what he wanted Santa to bring him for Christmas, a jockey's top in the colours of One Man - yellow, red star and white armlets. Another four wins followed that included defeats of that season's Sun Alliance winner Monsieur Le Cure over 3 and a half miles. And victory in Ascot's Reynoldstown chase beating Mailcom and future Irish national winner Mudahim.

Going from strength to strength a hill to climb was waiting for One Man ready though. - ready to halt this new jumps star. It was the hill of Cheltenham at the festival. One Man was well fancied to win the Sun Alliance Chase yet it was not to be. Under a patient Doughty ride he cruised around near the front most of the way until a bad mistake at the 14th changed the script. And allowed Monsieur Le Cure to go on to be the eventual winner with a tired One Man unplaced. On returning to Gordon Richards yard at Greystoke One Man was found to have a twisted back. A long summer's rest followed which saw Tony Dobbin take over as stable jockey from the retiring Neale Doughty. The new team made their debut at Ayr in November 94 when the by then 6 year old One Man simply hacked round winning with incredible ease, cheered on by a small boy standing at the open ditch wearing the yellow and red star.

Later that day Gordon Richards was to spot my son with his jockey top and he came over and said "there's a lad who knows what colours to wear eh , he's a right good 'orse you know." A nervous reply came, "I know he's going to be a champion", the young voice replied. With a ruffle of the lad's hair and a broad grin, The Boss, chest puffed out like a boxer ready for action, said with a wink "and he is n' all" and then went off to saddle another runner.

Newbury and the Hennessy Gold Cup were next over 3m 2f. Tony Dobbin gave One Man a tremendous ride pinging fence after fence and galloping all the way to the line to win in glorious fashion from Richard Dunwoody on Lord Relic. The big black ones were to post a reminder of the solidity of One Man though when he crashed through the last in the back straight at Wetherby during the Roland Merrick on Boxing, firing Tony Dobbin into the turf. A crashing fall followed in Kempton's Racing Post Chase - one of such severity that owner John Hales feared he had lost the horse. Happily One Man walked away sound .

Due to the seriousness of the fall he did not come back into training though until August after some schooling confidence building from John's daughter Lisa Hales. It was back to his favoured Ayr in November for One Man and his team and this father and son. Right back to his best and as sound as a bell One Man won comfortably from former Gold Cup winner Jodami. It was hard to know who had the biggest smile that day Tony Dobbin or the little boy wearing the yellow top with red star. The boy's smile lasted until he fell asleep that night "his horse" was back and as good as ever.

An attempt to win a second Hennessy was aborted due to the ground being far too soft. A win in Haydock's Tommy Whittle Chase revealed to any doubters just how well One Man could jump. Jumping round like a stag under Mark Dwyer deputising for the injured Dobbin. One Man gave what I believe was his finest display of jumping ,soaring over the open ditch as if he had taken wing. Having shown courage in winning the Hennessy , speed and pace at Ayr and Ascot and tremendous jumping ability at Haydock, in the King George One Man was to show us everything. The race had been switched from Kempton to Sandown on January 6th due to the bad weather. Would the Sandown hill or the quick succession of the railway fences halt him? These concerns combined with the fact that The boss had not been able to get much work into One Man due to frozen gallops, made victory no certainty. No one had told the horse to worry though as he was still cruising going into the pond fence three from home to win in style from the Sun Alliance winner Monsieur Le Cure and Gold Cup winner Master Oats.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup was the obvious next target now for racing's great hero. I am no vet but there was something just not right with One Man on Gold Cup day. Even the boss Gordon Richards expressed a concern. What WAS wrong though? Nothing obviously physical or it would have never escaped the eye of the boss. If ever there was a finer trainer of a horse I have never met him. Only the horse knew for sure what was wrong. He just did not sparkle as when I had seen him previously. Was it physical or foreboding of Prestbury Park and memories of his 4 year old slog and later injured back. The race itself is well documented with One Man hitting the often quoted "wall". Having ran and jumped well he "stopped to empty" just of the bend as Richard Dunwoody put it.

No matter what the experts have written since I will always be convinced that One Man stopped like that because something was wrong not because he just did not stay. Horses that do not stay do not stop running like they had been shot by a sniper. The vets could find nothing wrong after the race. However, few people who really understood the soul of One Man believed he simply did not stay that day. He had won a Hennessy Gold Cup over 3 and a quarter miles and a King George up Sandown's punishing hill. He could stay, the evidence is there.

There are so many theories as to why the grey never won a Gold Cup they could fill a book. We have to decide for ourselves. My own humble guidance would be that it is as foolish to say Desert Orchid was a not a good two miler because he tried and failed to win a Queen Mother Champion Chase . As it is to say One Man did not stay because he did not win a Cheltenham Gold Cup. Cheltenham and i's undulations has torn the heart out of many horses. If there was an unknown physical difficulty with One Man, wither respiratory or skeletal, Cheltenham may have aggravated it. If you look at the Gold Cup winners over the last decade you will find that very few go on to win any other race of significance with some never winning again, a point which the reader must consider for themselves when making a judgement on One Man's endeavours to win a Gold Cup.

Following his summer break he reappeared in the Charlie Hall at Wetherby with a comfortable win from Barton Bank. Straight to the King George this time back at its original venue at Kempton. An attempt to win the race for the second time. One Man jumped with precision, cruised into the lead, absolutely flew the second last, pinged the last and won in a time that broke the course record. Surely now the media would recognise him for the great horse that he was? But no, some preferred to concentrate on the fact that he "idled in front" despite the fact that we had a dual King George winner who had overcome setbacks and injuries to break the course record.

Undoubtedly One Man's jockey, Richard Dunwoody, was 'looking after' the horse and didn't need to ride him out, such was the fine measure of his superiority. A cheeky win followed in Cheltenham's Pillar Chase, narrowly from Barton Bank, superbly ridden by Adrian McGuire. Again the knives of criticism were sharpened in some camps, even after the horse had won over a course that had caused him so much misery. One Man possibly did conserve something in the Pillar, but surely this is the sign of an intelligent horse? . One Man had long been Gordon Richard's hack at Greystoke and it was clear to anyone who understands horses that here was a perfect unity of kindred spirits. Man and horse who respected each other, worked for each other and had the greatest affection for each other. The Boss decided his "little rubber ball" needed a little fun back in his life again after years of hard campaigns, so a spell of hunting followed. Then it was back to Cheltenham for one more go at that elusive Gold Cup. More like himself that day he cruised upsides eventual winner Mr Mulligan but weakened rapidly going to the last and only his courage took him over it.

The Boss said the next day the horse was fine and he felt he did not stay 3 and a quarter mile over a stiff hilly track like Cheltenham. Richard Dunwoody was still convinced something hurt him, that he could go through the barrier up the Sandown hill but not at Cheltenham. Richard feels that it is possible that the broken blood vessel One Man sustained when pulling up a few weeks later at Aintree in the Martell Cup was "a manifestation of the problem that was preventing him from winning a Gold Cup". The sight of One Man with blood streaming down his nose is not one which any horse lover wanted to see.

Watching at home on television, my own young son ,as always proudly wearing his One Man top, disappeared into his bedroom and appeared hours later with a brightly drawn get well soon card for the horse, which was duly posted to Greystoke. It was with some surprise that three weeks later my son received a hand written letter from Gordon Richards thanking him for the card, which he assured him was pinned up on the horse's box. He had also taken the trouble to enclose a photograph of One Man which to this day hangs in pride of place on the boy's wall.

This was an act of kindness from The Boss of which few would know. Most people only knew the Gordon Richards who had a temper that could melt steel, a man as hard and solid as his finest chaser, a man running one of the busiest yards in the country. Also few knew at the time Gordon Richards was terminally ill. Yet still a man with all these pressures took the time to sit down and write to a small boy whom he only knew from brief racecourse chats. This sums up The Boss, a man who would not suffer fools gladly , but a man who understood a fellow horse lover young or old, and understood when they were concerned. By now my young son wore his One Man jersey every time he set foot on a racecourse.

It was at a minor meeting at Ayr that the Boss saw him and cam over to say "that's what I like to see boy, you wear those colours with pride now". The lad stared up and nodded. With a smile I told the Boss that the boy had been concerned over the way some people had spoken about the horse on the television and in the press. "Oh you don't want to worry about them now , we know how good he is don't we" ? A beaming smile and a simple "Yes" the child replied. "Right then, you be proud of them colours and the 'orse he's gonna show them all." Then off the Boss went to the saddling boxes. We could not know that day it would be the last chance we would have to speak with The Boss.

The training pattern for One Man changed geared now, the goal being to win the Queen Mother Champion Chase. Victories on the way to Cheltenham included the Peterborough Chase at Huntingdon. A third King George was not to be on route as sights were firmly focused on winning the Champion Chase. On that glorious day of the Champion Chase who could have imagined that only weeks later One Man would lie dead at Aintree after a crashing fall. Not over the fearsome National fences but in the back straight of the Mildmay course. And that a few months later his legendary trainer would also have passed away.

That foulest of days that was to rob us of a great horse that had only just silenced his critics forever; a day that reduced John Hales and his family to shattered lost souls; a day that must have caused more pain to Gordon Richards and One Man's lass Audrey Walker, than we can ever know; a day that saw a small boy wearing a yellow top with red star crying his heart out - who shut himself away inside his toy cupboard unable to comprehend the lengths to which jump racing can stretch our emotions. It was a day that saw racing fans and horse lovers everywhere share that pain.

While it is proper we record the agony we all felt with the loss of One Man surely it is not proper we conclude his story on such a note. Better surely to conclude our tale of One Man with his crowning achievement. His win in the Queen Mother Champion Chase, which proved to be the conclusion of an incredible career of an exceptional horse who wrote a unique chapter in the history of National Haunt racing, being the only horse to win a Hennessy Gold Cup (3m2f), King George (3m) and Champion Chase(2 miles). Brian Harding came in for the ride after Tony Dobbin had injured his hand in accident the previous day as Richard Dunwoody had previously committed to Ireland's Klairon Davies.

A buzz rolled out from the crowd as the field lined up at the tapes, willing One Man to beat his Cheltenham hoodoo. To a massive roar they were off for the 1998 Champion Chase. And into the first fence with One Man disputing the lead from the top two milers Ask Tom and Klairon Davies. Past the stands and on past the enclosures it was still One Man on the rails jumping well and on out into the country where Ask Tom briefly jumped into the lead. Ears pricked the grey was having none of that and boldly challenged again with a fine leap. At the top of the hill a shout rose from the huge crowd as One Man went into the lead a half length clear of Ask Tom , utterly disbelieving what they saw - the incredible ease with which One Man was travelling. Rounding the final turn he quickly bounded clear, headed towards the second last and soared over with the flying birch firing off an applause for a champion. It is then we noticed our hearts beating like drums against our chests ,wondering whether he would go up that hill , thinking "God, he deserves it, come on son come on, into the last clear, no dangers, please God, surely". With heart thumping harder in time with the tattoo of One Man's hoofs as they thundered across the Cheltenham turf. Over the last he went and up that hill, with no stopping, no dangers, just one horse One Man the winner, the champion chaser. If ever there was the most perfect example of horse racing and what it is really all about it was that day.

One Man having won the 1998 Champion Chase

One Man was led in by his jubilant owner John Hales and doting lass Audrey Walker. Too unwell to join the on course celebrations his legendary trainer must have been bathing in pride and satisfaction. Walking through the masses towards the winners' enclosure John was almost exploding with pride and joy, trying his level best to thank all of the thousands of shouts of "well done" that poured towards One Man like a benevolent thunder all across Cheltenham.

A small boy was absent from school watching the race at home on television wearing the yellow top with red star , leaping with joy as "his horse" galloped into history confirming to the media experts and critics what a little boy and a great trainer had known all along. "He's a Champion Dad, he's a Champion ". One Man was without any doubt an exceptional, unique and great Racehorse. Amongst the many, many class horses he defeated were Gold Cup winners in Master Oats, Jodami and Mr Mulligan, A Champion Chase winner in Viking Flagship, Arkle winner Klairon Davies, Irish National winner Mudahim and Grand National winner Rough Quest. His prolific winning career included:

• Two King George wins (One breaking course record)
• The Queen Mother Champion Chase
• The Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup
• Reynoldstown Chase Pillar Chase
• Tommy Whittle Chase
• Peterborough Chase
• Charlie Hall Chase
• He is the only horse in the history of National Hunt Racing to have won both the King George and Champion Chase.

ONE MAN A Great Racehorse 1988 - 1998

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