National Hunt Chase to be Named in Memory of Maureen Mullins 

The G2 National Hunt Chase at next week's Cheltenham Festival will be run in honour of the late Maureen Mullins, who died last month at the age of 94. 

The move, which was announced by Cheltenham Racecourse on Monday, was welcomed by her son Tony, who said, “Undoubtedly the correct race for a great stayer.”

The matriarch of a hugely successful Irish racing dynasty, Mullins's late husband Paddy saddled six Festival winners, including one of the greatest National Hunt mares of all time, Dawn Run (Ire), who remains the only horse ever to win both the Champion Hurdle and Cheltenham Gold Cup, in 1984 and 1986 respectively. 

A successful rider, owner and breeder herself, Mullins's five children have also had a huge impact on the Cheltenham Festival. Her son Willie is the winningmost trainer with 94 winners to his name, while his brothers Tony and Tom have also also saddled winners at the Festival, and grandsons Patrick, Danny and Emmet have all ridden Festival winners.

“The National Hunt Chase has a long tradition of commemorating some of jump racing's most famous names and we are delighted that the Mullins family has agreed to have the historic contest run in honour of Maureen Mullins in 2024,” said Ian Renton, Managing Director, West, The Jockey Club.

“A true stalwart of jump racing, Maureen Mullins was a regular visitor to the Festival and her sad passing last month leaves a big void. We hope that putting her name to the National Hunt Chase celebrates her tremendous legacy in the appropriate way.”

Willie Mullins added, “Our family are delighted and honoured to have a race named after our mother Maureen who had a great affinity for Cheltenham and enjoyed every moment there.”

 

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One Of Irish Racing’s Most Beloved Figures Maureen Mullins Dies Aged 94

Maureen Mullins, Irish racing's great matriarch and the mother of the champion trainer Willie Mullins, has died at the age of 94 following a short illness.

Wife of the late Paddy Mullins, a multiple champion handler who managed the career of the great Dawn Run before passing away aged 91 in 2010, Maureen leaves an incredible legacy behind her. 

She had four sons and a daughter–trainers Tom, Willie and Tony along with George and daughter Sandra–who have gone on to make the Mullins name a dominant force in Irish racing and beyond. 

The remarkable tradition has been continued through Maureen's grandchildren, with Willie's son Patrick becoming the record-breaking Irish champion amateur, Tony's son Danny scooping multiple Grade 1s in the saddle and George's son Emmet, who also partnered many big-race winners as a rider, emulating his uncle Willie's achievements in winning the Grand National as a trainer with Noble Yeats in 2022. Six years previously, it was Tom's son David who partnered the Mouse Morris-trained Rule The World to win the Aintree showpiece. 

On Tuesday, another one of her grandchildren, Charlie, led home a one-two-three for Willie in the bumper at Thurles. 

Maureen was an ever-present figure on an Irish racecourse and was in attendance at her local track Gowran Park for its flagship Thyestes Chase fixture on January 25 where she was on hand to officially open the new weighroom. 

At the Horse Racing Ireland Awards in 2016, she was presented with the Contribution to the Industry Award. 

Willie commented at the time, “That was unexpected, and great for her and for everyone in the family. She enjoys her racing, enjoys life, and has an interest in everyone's horses–mine, Tony's, Tom's–and the careers of Danny, David and Patrick. It's a lot to keep her occupied.”

She was also a winning rider herself, steering Razzo Forte to glory in a female riders' event at Gowran Park in 1982, a race which her daughter also rode in. She was involved as an owner and breeder down the years, with Kilcruit a recent feather in her cap having won the Grade 1 Punchestown bumper following his sale having initially raced in her colours.

Requiem mass will take place at 12 o'clock on Friday in the Church of the Holy Trinity, Goresbridge, County Kilkenny, followed by burial in the new cemetery, Goresbridge.

 

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