Blackmore and Frost bid to make top Grade

RACHAEL BLACKMORE and Bryony Frost fight it out today to become the first female jockey to land a Grade One race over fences at the Cheltenham Festival.

Irish rising star Blackmore rode a winner on Tuesday and trainer Henry de Bromhead considers her to be a leading contender in this afternoon’s Ryanair Chase on Monalee.

Frost partners the Paul Nichollstrained Frodon, who has won three of four starts this season and has won four times at the track.

Asked what impresses him about Blackmore, who has 85 winners this season, De Bromhead said: ‘She’s just a very good rider. She’s very good at getting horses to jump, she’s positive, she works hard. She’s just a very good rider — and she wins.’ Blackmore’s rise to prominence has in large part been down to the support of Gigginstown racing manager Eddie O’Leary, who advised De Bromhead to give her a chance this season.

‘Eddie just mentioned her, he said I should try her because they’d found her very good in the few she’d ridden for them,’ said De Bromhead. ‘ And she just didn’t stop winning.’

Meanwhile, Nicholls hopes that Frodon and Frost can continue a promising partnership, which has seen them finish outside the first three only once in eight runs.

When it was noted that a win for Frost, 23, would be a landmark for a female jockey, Nicholls said: ‘It would be awesome, wouldn’t it? Frodon has done nothing wrong this year. He’s won here twice, loves the track and seems in good form.’