Veteran trainer George Charlton has decided to call time on the career of popular veteran Knockara Beau, who was retired after being pulled up in the Edinburgh Gin Handicap Hurdle at Kelso.
Charlton’s stalwart for nearly a decade, the son of Leading Counsel’s big day in the sun came in the Grade Two Cleeve Hurdle at Cheltenham in January 2014, in which the 66/1 shot under regular rider Jan Faltejsek, who rode the horse on every occasion apart from 10 outings, won the graded event by a short-head, getting up in the final strides to nail Sir Anthony McCoy on At Fishers Cross by a short-head.
Four-time Stayers’ Hurdle winner Big Buck’s was a further three-quarters of a length back in third.
That success was the crowning glory of a phenomenal career for the 14-year-old who won 11 of his 58 races under rules and won over £240,000 in prize money.
Ironically, Knockara Beau won on his career debut at Kelso and was successful at the track a further four times in his career.
Charlton spoke admirably about his stable star, commenting:
We said when the horse tells us, we’ll retire him and Jan [Faltejsek, jockey] said he just didn’t want to know going down to the start on that tacky ground.
In the same race, Reve De Sivola, another veteran of the staying hurdling division sadly died, with Charlton continuing:
So that’s it. He’s come out sound, while Reve De Sivola had that terrible accident, and he’s going to have a happy life without being in the public eye. He’s going to go to my cousin and he’ll take to it perfectly. He’s been loved to bits all his life and treated like royalty, really.
