Henry Cecil: Trainer of Genius

Winner of the 2014 Best Racing Book at the British Sports Book Awards

The story of trainer Henry Cecil is one of the great redemption songs of sporting history: decades of success at the highest level followed by years in the professional and personal depths then a glorious resurrection topped by the unbeatable Frankel, widely considered the greatest racehorse of all time. Hollywood could not have scripted the tale better. The public loved Cecil, and he returned that affection with a bemused tilt of the head and self-effacing humor. Despite that self-deprecation, Cecil's record testifies to his being one of the greatest racehorse trainers in history, with 25 wins in English Classics to his credit including the Derby four times as well as countless other big-race victories around the world. But what made the figure of Henry Cecil so compelling was the extraordinary personality behind the records, and no one was better placed to chronicle the giddy highs and desperate lows of his story than Brough Scott. The former jockey and now leading sports journalist witnessed Cecil's genius at close quarters for decades, and tells the full story with honesty and candor as well as admiration and affection.

Brough Scott rode 100 winners as an amateur and then professional jockey before becoming a broadcaster and journalist. He has written for the Sunday Times, the Independent on Sunday, and the Sunday Telegraph. He was voted Sports Journalist of the Year and has been three times Sports Feature Writer of the Year. He was also a founding director of the Racing Post, for whom he has been a regular contributor. He is the author of Galloper Jack, Racing Certainities, and many other titles about the world of racing.