Tom Abbot

Tom Abbot

Thomas - not adverse to a drink - died of a diseased heart on July 27, 1854. He passed away at the residence of his father, a Dublin saddler, in Wicklow Street, Dublin.

Hibernian Thomas Abbot was the substitute rider on the bay gelding Abd-El-Kader when that horse won the 1851 Grand National. (In doing so, it became the first horse to win the great race twice.)

When ridden by the relatively inexperienced Chris Green a year earlier, it had stormed home in record time: surprisingly, Chris was replaced for the second attempt, and Thomas came in for the ride.

Shortly before his death, Thomas won on his last ever ride in public, scoring on the 5-2 second favourite Jumpaway in the three-mile 1854 Kilrue Cup (Monday, May 1). Thomas took up the running from the favourite Torrent after jumping the fence in the castle field. Torrent took a horrible fall at the second-last, leaving Thomas and Jumpaway to come home alone.

Thomas had won this race on a previous three occasions: 1847, 1849 and 1850.

His first victory, on the bay gelding Proceed at 7-2, was hard-fought and narrowly gained, a head being the winning distance.

In 1849 - with 'about two dozen fences and two hurdles to be jumped' - Thomas rode his own horse, the five-year-old Farnham (6-4 fav), to victory, beating, among others, future Grand National winner Abd-El-Kader.

His third victory, on Monday, 29 April 1850, came on Fanny Ellsler, a previous winner of the race, which won effortlessly.

Thomas, riding Meath, also won the 1851 Great Belfast Handicap, then described as an event 'run over three and a half English miles over a fair, sporting country in the immediate neighbourhood of Comber'.

Thomas also won the 1850 Cheltenham Grand Annual on the 4-1 shot Farnham. He held on by a head from the Mason-ridden Proceed, which took a terrible beating from its jockey. Verax, ridden by J Holman, came third, beaten ten lengths.

He rode in a total of seven Grand  Nationals, striking gold on his fifth attempt.

Frederick (1847)  3rd.

Saucepan  (1848)  Pulled Up

The Iron Duke  (1849)  Pulled Up

Farnham  (1850)  5th

Abd-El-Kader  (1851)  WON

Abd-El-Kader  (1853)  pulled up

La Gazza Ladra  (1854)  pulled up.

Biggest wins:

1847:  Kilrue Cup - Proceed

1849:  Kilrue Cup - Farnham 

1850:  Kilrue Cup - Fanny Ellsler

1850:  Cheltenham Grand Annual - Farnham

1851:  Grand National - Abd-El-Kader

1854:  Kilrue Cup - Jumpaway

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