Lester Piggott

Lester Keith Piggott was an English Jockey. He is commonly known as ‘The Long Fellow’ because he was much taller than most jockeys were. He comes from a long line of jockeys and horse trainers. His children have also had careers or are married to spouses who have careers in the horsing business. Piggott is considered to be one of the greatest flat jockeys of all time. He holds an impressive record of 4,493 career wins. Those wins also include 9 victories at the Derby.

Piggott showed promise as a jockey when he was young. He won his first race when he was only 12 and as a teen, he constantly participated in big events including the Epsom Derby. He is known for having legions of fans and followers and is arguably credited for helping elevate horse racing beyond its class based origins. Piggott also helped pioneer as style of racing which is emulated by jockeys to this day.

He was a tall man, measuring 5 feet and 8 inches or 1.73 meters. This meant that if he wanted to be competitive, he had to keep his weight down. He struggled with this and throughout his career, he rode at around 112 ld/51 kg.

Piggott announced his retirement in 1985, but continued to ride until he retired for good in 1994. In 1987, he was imprisoned for 3 years because of tax problems. His legal problems also caused him to be stripped of his OBE (Order of the British Empire), which was awarded to him in 1975.

An annual Jockey award named "The Lesters" is named after Piggott.