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Horseytalk.net Special Interview
with Anthony Knott

Anthony Knott has just won his first race for – Wait for it – 28 years

A dairy farmer and jockey, his momentous triumph came at Wincanton. Now instead of being known for nearly 30 years as Knott the Loser, he is now known as Knott the Winner. Can't win can he? Or should that be lose?

Knowing when to quit is a feat that has proved beyond many great champions but not, it appears, Anthony Knott.

The 44-year-old amateur provided the sport with a heartwarming cameo at Wincanton on Thursday with his joyous wave to the crowd after ending a 28-year wait to ride a winner on Wise Men Say.

Ben Casserly
 

Since then he has had to juggle interview requests between milking his 300 cows which he starts at 3.30am each morning.

'I'm going to finish now,' he told me before reliving his five minutes of fame. 'I'd walked the course with (retired jockey) Steve Smith-Eccles, who is a coach to the young jockeys who normally ride in these hands-and-heel races. I could see him looking at me and thinking who the hell is he. He's older than I am.

'Walking the course I was chilled but as I got changed I started sweating. The day before I had said to trainer Colin Tizzard: "You'd better get someone else to ride in case I lose my bottle". 'Joe Tizzard had told me he would stay and said not to do anything silly at the last.'

So Anthony left it until after he had cleared the final flight before his mad moment with a flourish to the gallery that could have had disastrous results.

'I had no intention of doing that but the vicar and all my friends from my village of Sturminster Newton came running from the bar and there was a tremendous roar. You wave to people when you pass them in our village and I was just doing that. 'I had no intention of doing it, I just forgot I was in a race.' Knott, who also conquered a hatred of the swimming pool to swim every week with former Flat jockey Tim Sprake to maintain his fitness, was a welcome antidote to the serious nature of sport.

But his decision to go out on top looks wise. Punters' hearts could not probably take much more.