Bryan’s dream comes true

BRYAN Cooper was the toast of Tralee, Kerry and the whole country when he landed the Gold Cup at Cheltenham in March aboard Don Cossack to win steeplechasing’s most prestigious race and coveted prize.

Cooper gave 9/4 favourite Don Cossack a perfect ride over the Prestbury Park course to win the Gold Cup from Djakadam and Don Poli in what is the Farmer’s Bridge jockey’s biggest win of his short racing career. Cooper had endured a frustrating Tuesday and Wednesday at the Festival before guiding Empire of Dirt, a 16/1 shot, to victory in Thursday’s Brown Advisory & Merriebelle Stable Plate Handicap Chase. But the best was yet to come in Friday’s feature race, the Timico Gold Cup, when Cooper judiciously opted for the Gordon Elliott-trained Don Cossack over stablemate Don Poli for the Gigginstown Stud and owner Michael O’Leary. In a perfect show of cool, calm and collected riding, Cooper sat on the favourite until the pair made their move in the closing stages to win the race ahead of the Ruby Walsh piloted Djakadam with Don Poil well back in third.

It was an Irish clean sweep that gave O’Leary a second Gold Cup victory, a decade after the first, War Of Attrition, and left trainer Willie Mullins to settle for second place for the fourth year in-a-row.

“It was a dream come true to win the Gold Cup. There were a lot of press saying that I couldn’t get on with the horse,” said a triumphant Cooper.

“And I think I’ve proved you all wrong now so I’m delighted. I’m only 23. Ruby [Walsh], Barry [Geraghty] and Davy [Russell] have 10 to 15 years more experience on me, but they’ve been very good to me; they keep saying keep your chin up and train hard, and thankfully it paid off.

“I knew I would be on the best horse; Gordon and everyone had Don Cossack in tip-top shape. I had plenty of horse under me. From the last he pricked his ears and wasn’t doing a stroke.”