TEAM TIZZARD
Colin and family’s two shots to claim Kempton hat-trick
AVICTORY for either Lostintranslation or Thistlecrack in St Stephen’s Day’s Ladbrokes King George VI Chase at Kempton will go down in the record books as a third success in the race for Dorset trainer Colin Tizzard.
But in reality it will be victory for Team Tizzard. Colin may be the figurehead of the operation but his son, former jockey Joe, and daughter Kim are his trusted lieutenants with wife Pauline the glue holding the operation together.
Colin admits he would be happy to acknowledge their teamwork by having more than just his name on the trainer’s licence — something that happens in some overseas jurisdictions and something the BHA has said it is considering.
‘We are all little cogs working for the same thing. When they are all turning together it works brilliantly,’ is how Kim describes the secret of the Tizzard success.
When Kim returned home after a stint as nanny for former trainer Simon Sherwood — the man who rode legendary Desert Orchid to two (1986 and 1988) of his four King George wins — there were a dozen Tizzard racehorses being trained alongside their herd of dairy cows. Now there are more than 100 horses in a spanking new stable.
The emergence of the family operation has been one of jump racing’s stories of the decade.
They have gone from dairy farmers dabbling in horseracing to championship contenders with a stable including 2018 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Native River and Elegant Escape, the favourite for Friday’s Coral Welsh National at Chepstow.
Joe said: ‘We are still a reasonably young yard. We only sold the cows 12 months ago to push our racing business so we are not slowing down. We want to keep pushing and I suppose that ultimately means you want to be champion trainer.
‘We are a little way off it but ultimately that has to be the goal. There would be no point doing it if you didn’t think that.
‘We are getting more horses every year and better horses. We are putting better systems in place to buy and train the horses. Selling the cows was a big change for our family. It’s what got us started. It was how Dad was brought up and was a big decision.
‘We went for a drive in the truck for a few hours and chatted about it and I don’t think we have looked back for a second. It has made life a lot easier.’
So has that ability for the Tizzard team to delegate roles.
Joe does all the entries and, more comfortable in the spotlight after his successful days in the saddle, has also developed into the stable frontman, more often than not the spokesman but also searching out new clients and owners.
It was Joe who was initially contacted by Lostintranslation’s owners Paul Taylor and Richard O’Dwyer. Kim is head of logistics, from organising the feed and staff to making sure transport is arranged to take all the runners to the races.
That leaves Colin more time for what he loves and excels at — watching the horses on the gallops and making sure they are in tip-top shape.
Joe added: ‘Things have just evolved as we have got busier and learned to delegate. We all know our roles. I’m the one who tends to go racing the most so I am seen the most. Dad doesn’t want to travel racing five days a week. He is better sat at the top of the gallops.
‘Kim does the day-to-day running of things that nobody sees. I can declare 17 horses in four different directions at 10am on a Friday morning and not have to think about how they are going to get there and what tack they need.’ Kim added: ‘It’s a lot of work, seven days a week. We don’t have much time off. This is our life. There is a lot of pressure but it is great when it goes right.
‘Dad is the boss and Mum, bless her, does a hell of a lot behind the scenes and doesn’t get enough credit because she has a lot to put up with the three of us often coming back stressed. She is a big part of it too.’ The buck stops with Colin but he might not always get his own way even if he doesn’t know it.
Joe said: ‘Kim and I know how to play Dad. We know if we want something to change or if there is something Dad might be oldfashioned about we suggest it and feed it for a couple of weeks and then let him think it’s his idea. We then say, “good idea, Dad”.’
For all it is a family affair, the spotlight will inevitably fall on Colin on Stephen’s Day. His King George wins came via Thistlecrack — the 2016 winner who was fourth in 2017 and runner-up last year — who will be having a fourth crack at the £250,000 race and the popular Cue Card, the horse whose eight Grade One wins put the Tizzard stable on the map in 2015.
Lostintranslation is the horse that now occupies Cue Card’s old box and he is invested with massive hopes for the future.
Robbie Power’s mount was a leading novice chaser over two and a half miles last season but the biggest steeplechases in the calendar are now on his agenda after his win in the three mile, one and a half furlong Betfair Chase at Haydock.
If he lands the King George VI Chase it will put Lostintranslation in line for a £1million bonus put up by the Jockey Club if he can also win the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March.
Colin said: ‘Thistlecrack is in good form but Lostintranslation has the best chance, no doubt. He’s a young horse with pace and stamina and everything in front of him.
‘Last season was all about another day, which is why we have a King George and Gold Cup contender now. We didn’t empty him out.’