Leger Legends riders to this year include Derby and Aintree heroes

Derby winner Adam Kirby, a Grand National hero in Niall ‘Slippers’ Madden and a former Cheltenham Festival regular in Denis O’Regan are among the names involved in this year’s Leger Legends race at Doncaster next Sunday.

First run in 2010, the likes of Sir Anthony McCoy, Kieren Fallon, Mick Kinane, Julie Krone, Barry Geraghty, Richard Johnson and Richard Hughes have all taken part down the years.

This year Kirby, who won the Derby as recently as 2021 on Adayar, and Madden, successful at Aintree on Numbersixvalverde in 2006, will be part of the proceedings along with the likes of Jimmy Quinn and Franny Norton.

Andrew Thornton, part of the organising committee, said: “We’ve got a Derby winner in Adam Kirby, Jimmy Quinn, Franny Norton – the King of Chester – Greg Cheyne – the South African who has ridden at the Shergar Cup, has been a leading South African jockey and is heavily involved with William Haggas and  Adrian Nicholls.

“We’ve then got Gary Bardwell again, Sammy-Jo Bell who will be trying to win it for what seems the 28th time! Shelly Birkett and Gary Bartley who rode Hawkeyethenoo for Jim Goldie.

“Then we have Alan Johns who won his last race, Denis O’Regan, who has ridden a winner on every jumps track in the UK and Ireland, I think he’s the only jockey to have done so, Jimmy McCarthy, (Niall) Slippers Madden who won the Grand National on Numbersixvalverde and Dean Gallagher.

“Dean of course is a work rider for Aidan O’Brien so we’ve had to tell him he won’t be going as fast as he does in a morning!

“Jody McGarvey, a dual Grade One-winning rider is coming over and Andrew Tinkler, who is another now associated with William Haggas, is also having a go.

“We’ll be having the usual lunch when everybody gets together and there’s also going to be an online auction selling memorabilia.

“We’re raising money for some equipment called Arca-Ex which is a non-invasive treatment of the spinal cord via electrical stimulation to help improve hand and arm movement.

“It hasn’t been patented over here yet, it has been in America, but it will hopefully give people hope who have had spinal injuries. If we can be a leading force behind this in something for jockeys, it might give them some hope. Anything is worth a try.”