| Noel Murless | |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Trainer |
| Born | 24 March 1910 Malpas, Cheshire, United Kingdom |
| Died | 9 May 1987 (aged 77) |
| Major racing wins | |
| British Classic Race wins as trainer: 2000 Guineas (2) 1000 Guineas (6) Epsom Derby (3) Epsom Oaks (5) St Leger (3)[1] | |
| Racing awards | |
| British flat racing Champion Trainer (1948, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1973) | |
| Honours | |
| Noel Murless Stakes at Ascot Racecourse | |
| Significant horses | |
| Ridge Wood, Princely Gift, Crepello, Carrozza, Petite Etoile, St. Paddy, Twilight Alley, Aunt Edith, Fleet, Royal Palace, Busted, Caergwrle, Lupe, Altesse Royale, Mysterious, J. O. Tobin, Jumping Hill | |
Sir Charles Francis Noel Murless (24 March 1910 – 9 May 1987) was an English racehorse trainer who one of the most successful of the twentieth century. Murless began his career as a trainer in 1935 at Hambleton Lodge in Yorkshire before moving to Hambleton House after the war, at one time sharing premises with Ryan Price.[2] In 1947, he moved south, first to Beckhampton, Wiltshire (where he was champion trainer in his first season) and then to Warren Place, Newmarket.
Murless had nineteen classic wins in England and two in Ireland. Of these, there were three Epsom Derby wins, with Crepello (1957), St. Paddy (1960) and Royal Palace (1967). He also had an outstanding record in The Oaks, saddling no less than five winners: Carrozza (1957), Petite Etoile (1959), Lupe (1970), Altesse Royale (1971) and Mysterious (1973). His greatest horse was arguably Royal Palace, who preceded his Derby success by winning the 2,000 Guineas, to which he added the Eclipse and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes the following year.
In 1952 he became manager of Eve Stud, owned by Sir Victor Sassoon, and was the mastermind behind its racing success. Murless purchased the property from Sir Victor's widow in 1970 and named it Woodditton Stud. He continued the practice of standing stallions there, including the top-class racehorses Connaught and Welsh Pageant. The stallion tradition was maintained when the stud was sold to Yong Nam-Seng of Singapore in 1981.