Sir Henry Richard Amherst Cecil (11 January 1943 – 11 June 2013) was a British flat racing horse trainer.Evans, Richard. "Tortured genius of the Turf suffers a tragic fall from grace", The Daily Telegraph, 3 November 2000. Retrieved 19 June 2012. Cecil was very successful, becoming Champion Trainer ten times and training 25 domestic Classic winners. These comprised four winners of the Derby, eight winners of the Oaks, six winners of the 1,000 Guineas, three of the 2,000 Guineas and four winners of the St Leger Stakes."Sir Henry", Sir Henry Cecil website. Retrieved 18 June 2012. His 1000 Guineas and Oaks successes made him particularly renowned for his success with fillies.Wood, Greg. "Time may be right for return of Cecil glory days", The Guardian, 1 June 2007. Retrieved 18 June 2012. He was noted for his mastery at Royal Ascot, where he trained 75 winners.
Describing his approach to training, Cecil told The Daily Telegraph: "I do everything by instinct really, not by the book. I like to think I’ve got a feeling for and understand my horses, that they tell me what to do really."Chadband, Ian. "Henry Cecil the perfect man to handle wonderhorse Frankel", The Daily Telegraph, 12 October 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
Cecil was knighted for services to horse racing in the Queen's 2011 Birthday Honours."Queen's birthday honours list: Knights", The Guardian, 11 June 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2011.McGrath, JA and Rainey, Sarah. "Henry Cecil is the toast of horse racing after being awarded a knighthood", The Daily Telegraph, 10 June 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
Background and education Cecil was born on 11 January 1943 in a hospital near Aberdeen, ten minutes ahead of his twin brother David. His father, Lt. Hon. Henry Kerr Auchmuty Cecil, younger brother of the 3rd Lord Amherst of Hackney, had been killed in action with the Parachute Regiment in North Africa shortly before Cecil was born. His mother, Rohays Cecil, was the daughter of Major-General Sir James Burnett of Leys, 13th Baronet, owner of Crathes Castle, Aberdeenshire."Obituary: David Cecil", The Daily Telegraph, 10 November 2000. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
When he was still a baby, Cecil's mother married Captain Cecil Boyd-Rochfort, who was British flat racing Champion Trainer five times and who trained for, among others, George VI.
Cecil and his brother were educated at Sunningdale School and at Canford School, Dorset. He described himself as "very late-maturing and backward", saying that he was the first boy from his prep school ever to fail Common Entrance to Eton.Cook, Chris. "Henry Cecil back in fashion as Frankel takes real flair to Royal Ascot", The Guardian, 17 June 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2012. After school, the twins went to work at the Earl of Derby's Woodland Stud in Newmarket, Suffolk, and at other studs overseas. They completed their education at the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester.
Training career
Early career and success From 1964 to 1968 Cecil worked as an assistant at his stepfather's Freemason Lodge stable. He took out his own licence to train in 1969 and that year had his first winner with Celestial Cloud at Ripon on 17 May, with Wolver Hollow winning the Eclipse Stakes in July to give Cecil his first Group One success., Press Association via MSN news, 30 May 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012. He had his first winner at Royal Ascot the following year when Parthenon won the Queen Alexandra Stakes.Armytage, Marcus. "Royal Ascot: Cecil feeling the strain", The Daily Telegraph, 22 June 2001. Retrieved 2012-06-19. In his early years Cecil received the support of Lord Howard de Walden, a noted breeder and owner of racehorses.Wood, Greg. "Flag of uncertainty over Warren Place", The Independent, 4 October 1995. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
The languid, dandyish Cecil, noted for his flair in clothing,Armytage, Marcus. "Henry Cecil aims to fly the flag at the Derby once again", The Daily Telegraph, 29 May 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2012.Reid, Jamie. "Training Places" , The Financial Times, 27 June 2012. Retrieved 2012-11-1.Reid, Jamie. Emperors of the Turf, London: Macmillan (1989), p. 94. went on to remarkable achievements. In 1973 he tasted his first Classic success in Ireland when Cloonagh won the Irish 1,000 Guineas and in 1975 he won his first English Classic with Bolkonski at the 2,000 Guineas. He won three 1,000 Guineas and a further 2,000 Guineas before winning his first Epsom Derby in 1985 with Slip Anchor."Career History: Sir Henry Cecil", Website: horse-racing.co.uk. Retrieved 18 June 2012. In 1976 he had taken over the running of Warren Place in Newmarket from Sir Noel Murless, the father of his first wife, and he turned the stables into what has been called "the most glamorous yard in Europe",McGrath, Chris. "Henry Cecil: 'I don't like to be defeated – beat depression, get on'", The Independent, 25 July 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2012. setting it at "the pinnacle of British racing".Kelso, Paul. "Diffident but passionate and, like his horses, genuine", The Guardian, 3 June 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2012. In 1999 he won three of the five Classic races and finished second in the other two. Prince Ahmed bin Salman, the owner of Oath, one of Cecil's Derby winners, once said: "Winning Classics is easy. Just buy a horse and send it to Henry Cecil".
Among the jockeys to ride for Cecil, the most notable have been Steve Cauthen, Lester Piggott, Joe Mercer, Kieren Fallon, Pat Eddery and, later, Tom Queally.
Period in the wilderness After years of success, Cecil experienced a dramatic fall from grace. In the space of a few years a number of owner-breeders with long-standing relationships with Cecil died, including Louis Freedman, Jim Joel and Lord Howard de Walden.Davies, Ian. "Racing: Owner Lord Howard de Walden dies", The Independent, 11 July 1999. Retrieved 19 June 2012. His first wife, Julie, and his head lad, Paddy Rudkin, left and in 1995 Cecil's relationship with Sheikh Mohammed broke down, with the owner removing overnight the 40 horses he had in training at Cecil's stable. Sheikh Mohammed suggested at the time that he and Cecil had disagreed about the fitness of one of his thoroughbreds, Mark of Esteem, to run at Ascot—a disagreement which Cecil had made public. Cecil maintained that they were still "great friends" and had not fallen out.Alderson, Andrew. "'Being unfaithful is the lowest you can stoop. I will always regret it'", The Daily Telegraph, 7 September 2003. Retrieved 18 June 2012."Henry soldiers on", The Observer, 12 June 2005. Retrieved 18 June 2012. A number of Cecil's most notable horses had been owned by Sheikh Mohammed, including Oh So Sharp, Diminuendo, Indian Skimmer and Belmez. The incident has been flagged as the 'end of an era' in Cecil's career.
Between July 2000 and October 2006, Cecil failed to train a winner in any Group One race. In 2005 he saddled just a dozen winners overall. His stable of 200 horses shrank to barely 50 and Cecil began to talk of retirement.Paley, Tony. "Cecil has Wellbeing taken away", The Guardian, 7 January 2002. Retrieved 18 June 2012.Alderson, Andrew. "I was on the brink of quitting, says Cecil", The Daily Telegraph, 5 November 2000. Retrieved 19 June 2012. His second marriage publicly collapsed, his twin brother David died of cancer in 2000, his yard was losing money, and in 2006 it was revealed that he was himself undergoing treatment for stomach cancer. Cecil recalled being on the Heath at Newmarket and overhearing someone say, "That's Henry Cecil. He should have retired a long time ago".Hayward, Paul. "The hunger that drives the long reign of King Henry Cecil", The Observer, 12 June 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2012. His stable was supported almost exclusively by the loyalty of Prince Khaled Abdulla.Armytage, Marcus. "Frankel is the result of a lightning strike of genetics that may not be repeated for 100 years", The Daily Telegraph, 25 August 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
Return to success and Frankel When Cecil's Light Shift won the Oaks in 2007, it marked a return to form. This victory was his 24th English Classic winner and his eighth victory in the race, seven years after his previous winner. The season before he had barely made it into the top 100 trainers in the country.Wood, Greg. "Cecil finds Light at end of the tunnel to lift the Oaks at last", The Guardian, 2 June 2007. Retrieved 18 June 2012. "I might not be [competitive] on the outside", Cecil told The Independent. "But I am on the inside, definitely—underneath, very competitive. Always have been. We like winning, you know. We do like winning. It's what motivates you. Nobody likes failure. Your horses are running badly, or they're no good, you get jealous of everybody else. It's not quite so much fun, is it?" The 2011 season was Cecil's best for 10 years. He saddled 55 winners, securing prize money totaling more than £2.7 million.