Jockey Billy Loughnane won the inaugural UK & Ireland World Pool Jockeys' Championship and will donate his £50,000 cheque to The Christy Lambe Foundation, World Pool announced on Saturday.
On top of the leaderboard with 187.05pts, Loughnane finished ahead of Oisin Murphy (97.25pts) in second, having triumphed on a number of outsiders through the World Pool season. The competition rewards the winning jockey of each World Pool race in the UK and Ireland with the horse's World Pool Win dividend. Loughnane struck on Rashabar (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) in the G2 Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot, which returned 129.90 (versus 80/1) SP, which gave Loughnane a clear advantage against his peers.
Loughnane said, “I'm very grateful to World Pool for this prize. It's a significant amount of money and I'm honoured to be able to donate it to The Christy Lambe Foundation.
“Riding in these races on the big days is what I've always dreamed of, so to win a few and to top the leaderboard is a fantastic feeling.
“The Christy Lambe Foundation was only setup two years ago and this money will be very important. The charity works to help people struggling with mental health and poverty, and it's a cause that's close to my heart as Christy's oldest brother Michael is my sponsor, through his company Lambe Construction.”
For more information about the UK & Ireland World Pool Jockeys' Championship, please visit World Pool's website.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
