Epsom Downs Racecourse has announced the introduction of the Lester Piggott Handicap S. on Derby Day, to be run in memory of the legendary jockey who died a year ago at the age of 86. Frankie Dettori will lay a wreath at Piggott's commemorative statue on Saturday.
“It is an honour to be asked to lay a wreath at Lester's statue on Derby Day,” Dettori said. “He was a hero of mine who then became a good friend and it's impossible to measure the impact he had on me, both as a person and a jockey throughout my life. I'm sure it will be a poignant and emotional moment for many reasons and I'm grateful to Epsom Downs for inviting me to lead this year's tributes to Lester on my last Derby Day as a jockey.”
Piggott rode in the Derby 36 times between 1951 and 1994 and won nine times, starting with Never Say Die in 1954 and followed by Crepello (1957), St Paddy (1960), Sir Ivor (1968), Nijinsky (1970), Roberto (1972), Empery (1976), The Minstrel (1977) and Teenoso (1983). Nicknamed 'The Long Fellow', Piggott also won the Oaks six times and the Coronation Cup on nine occasions.
“For so many of us, Lester Piggott is synonymous with the Derby and Epsom Downs like no other jockey before or since,” said Brian Finch, Chair of Epsom Downs Racecourse. “Lester sadly passed away just six days before the Derby in 2022 and we ran the Derby in his memory. For such a distinguished figure in the long history of the Derby, and with his unprecedented achievements unlikely to be matched, we felt it was important to establish a permanent annual commemoration and celebration of Lester's life on Derby Day.”
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