Lester Piggott was a wealthy English professional jockey with a significant net worth.
At the age of 86, Lester, the greatest jockey of the postwar era and a character who transcended the sport of horse racing during the peak of the Derby, died.
Since Piggott had passed away, Frankie Dettori, the only jockey of equal standing, was ready to pay his respects. Piggot’s death was confirmed by his son-in-law, Derby-winning trainer William Haggas, via social media.
Lester Piggott’s Net Worth
Before his death, Lester had a net worth of $15 million. In his illustrious career as a flat racing rider in England, he won 4,493 races, including nine Epsom Derby victories.
He is widely recognized as one of the finest flat racing jockeys of all time, as well as the creator of a widely replicated style.
He was termed “The Long Fellow” for his competitive mentality, which included keeping himself 30 pounds under his natural weight and overusing the whip on occasion, such as on Roberto in the 1972 Derby.
Piggott had such an impact on racing that he invented a new “shorter” race-riding style with pulled-up stirrup leathers, radically changing the sport.
Piggott was champion jockey 11 times between 1960 and 1982, winning his first Derby at the age of 18 on Never Say Die. Despite their height, Pat Eddery and Willie Carson were the best natural riders in the saddle during the sport’s golden era.
The jockey awards are held every year. The Lesters, his restaurant, first opened in 1990 and is named after him. Piggott and Frankel are the first two players to be inducted into the British Champions Series Hall of Fame, which was established in 2021.
In his illustrious career as a flat racing rider in England, he won 4,493 races, including nine Epsom Derby victories.
He is widely recognized as one of the finest flat racing jockeys of all time, as well as the creator of a widely replicated style.
He was termed “The Long Fellow” for his competitive mentality, which included keeping himself 30 pounds under his natural weight and overusing the whip on occasion, such as on Roberto in the 1972 Derby.
Piggott had such an impact on racing that he invented a new “shorter” race-riding style with pulled-up stirrup leathers, radically changing the sport.
Piggott was champion jockey 11 times between 1960 and 1982, winning his first Derby at the age of 18 on Never Say Die. Despite their height, Pat Eddery and Willie Carson were the best natural riders in the saddle during the sport’s golden era.
The jockey awards are held every year. The Lesters, his restaurant, first opened in 1990 and is named after him. Piggott and Frankel are the first two players to be inducted into the British Champions Series Hall of Fame, which was established in 2021.
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Career
Piggott began racing horses from his father’s stable when he was 10 years old, and won his first race at Haydock Park when he was twelve years old on a horse named The Chase. Piggott was well-known for his reserved demeanor. His mother, he said, correctly downplayed his accomplishment, whereas his father rarely offered counsel unless there had been a specific blunder.
He rode his first winner of The Derby on Never Say Die in 1954, when he was eighteen years old, and went on to win eight more on Crepello (1957), St. Paddy (1960), Sir Ivor (1968), Nijinsky (1970), Roberto (1972), Emery (1976), The Minstrel (1977), and Teenoso (1980).
He was the stable jockey for Noel Murless and then Vincent O’Brien, and he had an illustrious racing career. Piggott dubbed the “housewives’ favorite,” amassed legions of fans and contributed significantly to the expansion of horse racing’s appeal beyond its narrow, class-based origins.
Piggott struggled to keep his weight down and rode at 8 stone 5 pounds for the majority of his career. He was famously tall for a Flat jockey (5 ft 8 in/1.73 m), hence his nickname “The Long Fellow” (53 kg; 117 lb).
He invented a new method of racing that was quickly followed by colleagues both at home and abroad, allowing him to win the title of Champion Jockey eleven times. Early in his career, he too had to overcome obstacles.
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In 1980, he parted ways with the Sangster–O’Brien partnership and was hired as a stable jockey for Noel Murless’s son-in-law Henry Cecil, the British flat racing Champion Trainer, at Warren Place, Murless’s old stables. In 1981 and 1982, he was crowned champion jockey once more.
Piggott claimed he had agreed to ride the previous year’s Arc third Awaasif and could only ride All Along if that horse did not run in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe for Patrick Louis Biancone in late 1983 when a dispute arose over whether he had reneged on an agreement to ride Daniel Wildenstein’s All Along in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe for Patrick Louis Biancone Walter Swinburn rode All Along instead of Piggott because Wildenstein refused to let him ride any of his horses.
Piggott paid the price when All Along won the Arc de Triomphe and a slew of other international races during an autumn season that culminated in her being crowned U.S. Horse of the Year. Cecil and Piggott split in 1984, with Steve Cauthen taking over at Warren Place, due to the fact that Wildenstein was one of Cecil’s major shareholders.
Piggott rode as a freelancer in 1985, winning the Prix de Diane with André Fabre riding Lypharita, the 2000 Guineas Stakes with Michael Stoute atop Shadeed, and the Benson & Hedges Gold Cup and Irish Champion Stakes with Luca Cumani aboard Commanche Run.
He is largely recognized as one of the best flat racing jockeys of all time, with 4,493 career victories, including a record nine Epsom Derby victories.
Piggott said Sir Ivor was the easiest of his great winners to ride.
Lester Piggott’s Death Cause
The British racing hero, who was rumored to be the Queen’s favorite, died at a hospital near his residence in Switzerland.
Piggott’s son-in-law William Haggas reported the 86-year-death old just a week after he was sent to a hospital in Bursinel, Switzerland, on Sunday, May 29, 2022.
Piggott died quietly, according to him, albeit the cause of death has not been made public. Natural elements could have played a role, depending on the conditions.
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Personal Life
Susan Armstrong is the wife of Lester Piggott, a former English jockey. Susan and Lester were married in 1960. Maureen Piggott and Tracy Piggott, their two children, finally divorced.
Their wedding was held at St. Mark’s Church on North Audley Street in London. Susan Armstrong’s father, Sam Armstrong, and brother, Robert Armstrong, were also jockey trainers.
Maureen married William Haggas, a well-known trainer, and Tracy became a sports broadcaster for the Irish television channel RTÉ. Lester, her husband, was the father of an only child, Jamie, who was born out of wedlock.
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