Pat Eddery, Prolific and Steely Jockey, Dies at 63

Pat Eddery, one of the greatest jockeys of postwar era, died on Tuesday at 63. Edtery won 4,632 career races, including the Epsom Derby, the 2,000 Guineas and the St. Leger. He was champion jockey in Britain 11 times, a record that tied him with Lester Piggott. His most famous victory was in the 1986 Arc de Triomphe. He also won two Breeders’ Cup races in U.S. in 1985 and 1991. In 1991, at Churchill Downs, he rode Sheikh Albadou to a decisive victory in Breeder”s Cup Sprint at odds of 26 to 1.

In his memoir, “To Be a Champion,” published in 1992, he wrote that the lasting pleasure is to win the title.