Barry Geraghty

Barry Geraghty (born 16 September 1979 in Pelletstown, County Meath, Ireland) is an Irish jockey. He was the leading rider at the 2012 Cheltenham Festival and 2011 Grand National Meeting.

Geraghty rode his first winner in January 1997 and three years later he became the Irish Champion jump jockey for the first time. He rode his first Cheltenham winner on the Jessica Harrington trained Moscow Flyer in the 2002 Arkle Chase.

He won the Grand National in 2003 on Monty's Pass. Also that year he won five races at the Cheltenham Festival, including the Queen Mother Champion Chase on Moscow Flyer and was voted Irish sports personality of the year.

In the 2003-4 season he became Champion Irish jump jockey for the second time and won the Stayers Hurdle at Cheltenham on the JJ O' Neill trained Iris's Gift.

Geraghty and Moscow Flyer won their second Champion Chases at the 2005 Cheltenham Festival, and Barry also won the Cheltenham Gold Cup on Kicking King for trainer Tom Taaffe at that meeting. Following the retirement of Mick Fitzgerald he became first jockey to the Nicky Henderson stable in 2008.

In 2009 he won the Champion Hurdle on Punjabi the Arkle Challenge Trophy on Forpadydeplasterer and Triumph Hurdle on Zaynar. In winning the Champion Hurdle he became the first jockey to have won the big four races at cheltenham (Champion Hurdle, Champion Chase, Stayers Hurdle, Gold Cup) and The English Grand National. On the 2 November 2009 he rode his 1000th winner under National Hunt Rules in UK and Ireland when the Nicky Henderson trained Duc De Regniere won at Kempton. He won his fourth Champion Chase at the 2012 Cheltenham festival on Finians Rainbow. He has had at least one winner at each Cheltenham festival since his first victory in 2002.

On 28 August 2012 he recorded his 1,000th Irish winner after a treble at Cork Racecourse.