Entries are open now for the 2021 Retraining of Racehorses (RoR) Horse Personality of the Year award.
The award celebrates former racehorses that have shown exceptional character in transitioning to a new career and have had a positive impact on those around them.
Entries are invited from owners of former racehorses, and nominations close Monday 29th November.
Leading jockey Hollie Doyle (pictured above), who has over 150 winners to her name and has broken her own record for the number of wins in a year by a female jockey, will shortlist finalists and choose the overall winner.
About the awards
The RoR Horse Personality of the Year award was given for the first time in 2020 and attracted over 250 entries.
Last year’s winner was 12-year-old gelding Ned Causer, a former racehorse who ran just three times in a short-lived racing career but had a transformational effect on the life of his owner, Sarah Peacock, helping her to overcome bouts of anxiety and depression.
Watch Sarah and Ned’s story here.
Three finalists will be shortlisted and invited to the RoR Awards at The Jockey Club Rooms in Newmarket on Saturday 22nd January 2022.
The overall winner of the RoR Horse Personality of the Year will be revealed on the night.
“We hope that this award will get people talking passionately about what it means to own a former racehorse,” said Di Arbuthnot, chief executive of RoR.
“We want to recognise those horses with a unique personality and character, and to also showcase the special bond they develop with their riders.
“We know there are many wonderful success stories, as well as great achievements, among the thousands of former racehorses that are lovingly rehomed and retrained each year.”
The award is given in honour of the late Paul Mellon, philanthropist and owner of Mill Reef — the 1971 Derby and Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner — who bequested part of his estate to RoR.
How to enter
Nominations from owners of former racehorses registered with RoR can be made online here until Monday 29th November.
Shortlisted finalists will be notified by 8th December and all three shortlisted horses will receive an RoR rug.
The winner will be presented with the RoR Horse Personality of the Year Trophy at the awards.
