Born in Leicestershire, Jenny was raised in a large family on a farm without gas, water or electricity. Leaving school at fifteen for a job as a stable girl, she met jockey Richard Pitman and the age of nineteen, married him. The couple moved to Wiltshire where they purchased a plot of land on which to build stables and in 1975 Jenny gained her first horse training licence.
Pitman had her first win that very same year and but as success came calling her marriage was in tatters. In 1977 Jenny and Richard divorced and Jenny left Wiltshire for Lambourn, Berkshire.
The winners soon began to accrue and Jenny herself gained the respect of the racing world. Nobody believed however, that she could train a horse that would bring her home the most coveted racing title of all - The Grand National. After all, no female trainer had ever done so!
The Grand National is not a race for the faint hearted! Often criticised for it's dangerous aspects, the National tests not only the nerve of owners and trainers but the skill of both jockey and horse. With treacherous fences and a course which stretches over four and a half miles, there's more than an element of danger and yet a difficult to ignore sense of excitement.
Only the well trained and sound horse can survive, and with the race attracting the elite of world trainers, who would believe that a woman stood a chance? Jenny Pitman did! She took the title not once, but twice, first with 'Corbiere' in 1983 and then with 'Royal Athlete' in 1995.
Jenny almost gained the title a third time too when in 1993, her horse 'Esha Ness' won the 'National that never was.' 'Esha Ness' crossed the post in 1st place but the race was declared void after two false starts left half of the horses at the starting line. Believe me, there was a LOT of controversy over that one!
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