10 facts about Aldaniti

● Aldaniti (by Derek H) could pull like a tank and yet was gentle enough to let 11-year-old Alex Embiricos groom him when on box rest.

● He was bred by Tommy Barron in Yorkshire and named after his four grandchildren – Alastair, David, Nicola and Timothy.

● “Niti” raced 28 times in total with eight wins and 10 places, including third in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and second in the Scottish National.

● He was bought as a youngster by Josh Gifford and sold on to Nick and Valda Embiricos in 1975, who had always dreamt of winning the National.

● “He took to jumping straight away,” says Althea Gifford. “He was just a natural jumper, very flamboyant. He could just stand off and always get there. Your heart was never in your mouth with him.”

● Because of his history of leg injuries, Josh gave him minimal preparatory runs. He had had only one run in 17 months before his National win.

● Niti played himself in some of the shots in Champions

(pictured), the film about his and Bob’s story, although he didn’t jump for the film. Six equine doubles were also used, all made up to look like him.

● Nick Embiricos had the idea of Aldaniti doing a sponsored ride over 250 miles from Buckingham Palace to Aintree. Different people raised £1,000 or more to ride him for a mile, and he carried The Princess Royal and the Duchess of York, among others. He eventually did two rides, raising over £800,000 for cancer research.

● Niti was very laid-back when he wasn’t racing. “We all loved the horse,” says Alex Embiricos. “He was so kind and gentle, and so empathetic. On the sponsored rides, if he got someone who had a disability on him, he was a saint. He tried his hardest in everything he did.”

● Niti returned to the Embiricos farm (in the care of Beryl and Wilf Millam) to recuperate from injuries, and later to retire. He died there aged 27, and is buried there.