Thursday is Andrew Nicholson's big day at the Cheltenham Festival
Nicholson getting fit under the watchful eyes of AP McCoy (photo: Channel 4 Racing)It will be the sixth year the Cheltenham Festival has run its charity race - the St Patrick's Derby that closes the card on the Festival's Thursday - March 12 this year. Lockeridge based event rider, Andrew Nicholson will be one of the selected entrants raising money for the Injured Jockeys Fund (IJF).
It is a flat race for amateur riders who can raise the £5,000 in sponsorship. And their horses must have run twice under rules.
Nicholson will be riding the Nigel Twiston-Davies trained Golden Jubilee - a six year-old that has won five times on the flat. Nicholson has been getting his weight down and training hard - including a session under the eagle eye of champion jump jockey AP McCoy at the IJF headquarters at Lambourn.
A former stalwart of the New Zealand eventing team, Andrew Nicholson, told Cotswold Life: “I will be as competitive as I can be but it’s the horse that has to run the mile and a half and lug me up the hill. As long as I do my job right and not make a fool of myself I will be happy and if I have got a horse that can really gallop who knows?"
Phil Clark being interviewed by a Racing UK colleagueHe will face some seasoned competition. The competitors include Clifford Baker who is head lad at Paul Nicholls' yard and Phil Clark the long-standing cameraman for the Racing UK television service and who has probably watched more races more closely than many of the other riders.
The Injured Jockeys Fund was established in 1964 by Lord Oaksey, after the devastating accidents to jockeys Tim Brookshaw and Paddy Farrell. The fund supports jockeys with career ending injuries and does amazing rehabilitation work - notably at its Lambourn headquarters - for many other riders injured in racing and other equestrian sports.
The choice of the IJT to benefit from this year's race is particularly significant as it was on the Thursday of the 2013 Festival that jockey J T McNamara had a terrible fall that left him paralysed.
Also taking part is Olive Murphy, a senior cabin crew member with Aer Lingus. She held an amateur licence in Ireland from 1993 to 1996 and is a lifelong friend of McNamara.
The youngest of this year's twelve riders is Thomas Williams - a student at Loughborough University and a pupil assistant trainer with Violet Jordan.
Andrew Nicholson will not be asking you to back him to win the race, but he does want you to sponsor him at his Just Giving site.