Sir Henry Cecil dies of cancer at 70

Sir Henry Cecil, the legendary British horseman who captured 10 training

titles, 25 English classics, and most notably trained the undefeated star

Frankel, died Tuesday after a long battle with stomach cancer. He was 70.

The news was confirmed by an announcement from Warren Place Stables,

Newmarket, on sirhenrycecil.com.

"I do not believe this country has ever produced a better trainer than

Henry," trainer Sir Michael Stoute said. "I know there has never been one so

loved."

A stepson of noted trainer Captain Cecil Boyd-Rochfort, for whom he was an

assistant in the mid-1960s, Cecil took out his own license in 1969 and earned

his first significant victory in that year's Eclipse Stakes at Sandown with

Wolver Hollow.

Cecil's 25 domestic classics included four renewals of the Derby, eight of

the Oaks, three Two Thousand Guineas, six One Thousand Guineas, and four St

Legers. Among his most notable classic winners was the filly Triple Crown winner

Oh So Sharp (1985).

Cecil, who also had six classic winners in Ireland and five in France, had

the greatest horse of his career come through his yard in the twilight of his

life. Juddmonte Farms' homebred Frankel retired last year after winning all 14

career outings. The Galileo colt captured 10 Group 1 contests, including the Two

Thousand Guineas, the Champion, the International, the Dewhurst, the St James's

Palace, the Queen Elizabeth II, and two renewals of the Sussex.

"He has been an intrinsic part of racing and Royal Ascot for the whole of his

career," said Johnny Weatherby, Her Majesty The Queen's representative. "No one

had more success at the (Royal Ascot) meeting and his 75 winners are a long way

clear of anybody else."

Cecil-trained horses raced sparingly in North America, but among his leading

victories were the 2009 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf with Midday, and the

1998 Canadian International with Royal Anthem.

Failed marriages and business associations, including with Sheikh Mohammed,

saw Cecil become fodder for British tabloids earlier in the century, but a

sustained relationship with Juddmonte, among others, saw his fading career

resurrected in the final years of his life.

Cecil, who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2011, is survived by three

children, and by his third wife, Jane. The British Horseracing Authority

announced Tuesday that Lady Cecil would be granted a temporary trainers license.

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