Charles Smirke | |
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Occupation | Jockey |
Born | 23 September 1906 Lambeth, England, United Kingdom |
Died | 30 December 1993 | (aged 87)
Major racing wins | |
British Classic Race wins: 2,000 Guineas (2) 1,000 Guineas (1) Epsom Oaks (0) Epsom Derby (4) St. Leger Stakes (4) | |
Racing awards | |
British flat racing Champion Apprentice (1925, 1926) | |
Significant horses | |
Windsor Lad, Bahram, Mahmoud, The Bug, My Babu, Tulyar, Never Say Die, Hard Ridden |
Charles James William Smirke (1906–1993), was a British flat-race jockey. In a career that lasted from 1920 until 1959, he rode the winners of eleven British Classic Races. As a rider, he was known for his skill, strength and tactical intelligence,[1] together with his self-confident and outspoken personality. Although he never won the Championship, he was regarded as one of the best jockeys of his era.[2] The Racing Post ranked him as the fifth greatest jockey of the 20th Century and the greatest never to have been champion.[3]