Lester Piggott, widely considered to be the greatest Flat jockey of all time, died in the early hours of Sunday morning. He was 86.
A legendary figure and champion jockey on 11 occasions, Piggott won the Derby nine times, having ridden his first winner at the age of just 12, in 1948. He retired with 4,493 victories to his name.
Born in Oxfordshire in 1935 to a family steeped in centuries of racing history, Piggott's riding career spanned more four decades. In that time he rode the winners of 30 British Classics, with his numerous international successes including three wins in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
He initially retired from race-riding in 1985 and trained for a time from Eve Lodge Stables in Newmarket before making a sensational comeback to the saddle in 1990. Ten days after his resumption he won the Breeders' Cup Mile on Royal Academy for Vincent O'Brien, with whom he had a lengthy and highly successful association.
Piggott had recently been hospitalised in Switzerland, where he has lived for a number of years.
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