◆ Trending: Five must-see horse racing films ahead of the Grand National
This Saturday will see the Grand National return to Aintree Racecourse, watched by millions on television.
Here are five films that capture all the drama of the Sport of Kings.
Champions – When it comes to sports film you can’t beat a narrative arc that begins in tragedy and ends in triumph – and this film is a classic of the genre. John Hurt has rarely been better than as jocky Bob Champion who (spoiler alert) overcame cancer to win the 1981 Grand National. It’s an incredible true story told and acted beautifully.
Dettori – Recently hitting the headlines for riding six winners in a day, rumours of jockey Fankie Dettori’s retirement are clearly greatly exaggerated. This documentary tells the story of how he overcame nearunimaginable adversity to become one of those rare athletes that manage to transcend their sport.
The Cup – Another story of triumph over adversity, this tells the true story of Damien Oliver, a young jockey who loses his only brother in a tragic racing accident – eerily similar to how their father died. He suffers defeat-after-defeat until team with an inspirational Irish trainer for a pop at the 2002 Melbourne Cup.
Secretariat – When a housewife and mother with little knowledge of horse racing takes over her father’s stables it seems unlikely success will follow. Taking on the misogynistic world of racing with the assistance of a veteran trainer she beats all the odds to produce arguably the greatest racehorse in history.
Dark Horse – This crowdpleasing doc tells the story of racehorse Dream Alliance. When a barmaid in a Welsh mining village encourages 23 friends to put aside £10 a week to breed a horse, the racing world looks on in astonishment as they manage to create a winner.