Stamina, Drama and Redemption: Bindaree’s Unforgettable 2002 Grand National
The 2002 Grand National, sponsored by Martell, was run at Aintree on 6 April on officially good going.
Forty runners went to post for the Grade 3 handicap, with the contest coming just weeks after Jim Culloty had won the Cheltenham Gold Cup on Best Mate, setting up the chance of a rare spring double for the rider.
The only problem was that Bindaree's connections had other ideas!
Bindaree was an Irish‑bred gelding, foaled in 1994, and raced in the colours of Raymond Mould for the 2002 National success.
He was trained at Naunton in the Cotswolds by Nigel Twiston‑Davies, already a National‑winning trainer thanks to Earth Summit in 1998, and partnered at Aintree by Cheltenham Gold Cup‑winning jockey Jim Culloty.
The horse would go on to add the 2003 Welsh Grand National to his record, under Carl Llewellyn, underlining his credentials as a thorough stayer.
2002 Grand National Field
Despite his proven stamina, Bindaree was allowed to go off at 20/1 in a packed betting heat dominated by several better‑fancied rivals.
Among the key dangers was the 8/1 favourite Blowing Wind (3rd in 2001), ridden by A. P. McCoy and trained by Martin Pipe, a seasoned Aintree campaigner who eventually finished third.
What’s Up Boys, representing Philip Hobbs and Richard Johnson, was a 10/1 shot who had plenty of support and would play the leading role in the race’s closing stages.
From the outset, the 2002 Grand National was run at a solid, uncompromising gallop that strung the field out early. The race claimed two equine fatalities, Manx Magic and The Last Fling, a stark reminder of Aintree’s demands despite ongoing safety modifications.
Only 11 of the 40 starters completed the full marathon trip, but Bindaree travelled prominently for much of the race, jumping soundly and keeping out of trouble while others fell away.
As they reached the latter stages, however, he appeared to be fading out of contention, with What’s Up Boys sweeping past and going several lengths clear after the last, seemingly on his way to victory.
At this point, even Twiston‑Davies and many watching assumed Bindaree’s chance had gone, with the grey looking the likely hero.
The Dramatic Late Rally
What followed turned the 2002 renewal into one of the more memorable finishes of the modern era.
Having been headed and briefly outpaced, Bindaree found a remarkable second wind on the long run‑in from the elbow, gradually clawing back What’s Up Boys’ advantage.
Under a relentless drive from Culloty, he reeled in the leader inside the final 100 yards and surged past to win by a length and three‑quarters, with Blowing Wind staying on for third and Kingsmark taking fourth for Martin Todhunter and Ruby Walsh.
That late burst cemented the narrative of Bindaree as the horse who looked beaten only to snatch glory on the line.
For Culloty, it completed a remarkable few weeks, adding the world’s most famous steeplechase to his recent Gold Cup triumph and underlining his status as one of the sport’s leading jump jockeys of the time.
Finishing Order in 2002
| Pos | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bindaree (IRE) | Nigel Twiston-Davies | Jim Culloty | 20/1 |
| 2 | What's Up Boys (IRE) | Philip Hobbs | Richard Johnson | 10/1 |
| 3 | Blowing Wind (FR) | M C Pipe | A P McCoy | 8/1F |
| 4 | Kingsmark (IRE) | Martin Todhunter | R Walsh | 16/1 |
| 5 | Supreme Charm (IRE) | Kim Bailey | Robert Thornton | 28/1 |
| 6 | Celibate (IRE) | Charlie Mann | Noel Fehily | 66/1 |
| 7 | You're Agoodun | M C Pipe | J R Kavanagh | 50/1 |
| 8 | Royal Predica (FR) | M C Pipe | Jimmy McCarthy | 80/1 |
| 9 | Streamstown (IRE) | Ferdy Murphy | John McNamara | 40/1 |
| 10 | Birkdale I (IRE) | Ferdy Murphy | Jason Maguire | 50/1 |
| 11 | Mely Moss (FR) | Charles Egerton | Norman Williamson | 25/1 |
| BD | Struggles Glory (IRE) | D C Robinson | Benjamin Hitchcott | 66/1 |
| BD | Ad Hoc (IRE) | Paul Nicholls | Paul Carberry | 10/1 |
| BD | Logician (NZ) | I A Balding | Mark Bradburne | 80/1 |
| F | Inn At The Top | James Turner | A S Smith | 40/1 |
| F | Niki Dee (IRE) | P Beaumont | Russ Garritty | 66/1 |
| F | The Last Fling (IRE) | Sue Smith | Richie McGrath | 40/1 |
| F | Samuel Wilderspin | Richard Lee | Tom Doyle | 14/1 |
| F | Paris Pike (IRE) | Ferdy Murphy | Richard Guest | 10/1 |
| F | Super Franky (IRE) | C Byrnes | Mr P P O'Brien | 66/1 |
| F | Gun'n Roses II (FR) | M C Pipe | Marcus Foley | 100/1 |
| F | Marlborough (IRE) | Nicky Henderson | Mick Fitzgerald | 20/1 |
| F | Wicked Crack (IRE) | Edward U Hales | Conor O'Dwyer | 33/1 |
| F | Goguenard I (FR) | Nicky Henderson | Warren Marston | 66/1 |
| F | Manx Magic (USA) | M C Pipe | Gerry Supple | 100/1 |
| F | Davids Lad I (IRE) | A J Martin | Timmy Murphy | 10/1 |
| F | Majed (FR) | M C Pipe | Barry Fenton | 66/1 |
| F | Carryonharry (IRE) | M C Pipe | R Wakley | 66/1 |
| F | Iris Bleu I (FR) | M C Pipe | Paul Moloney | 100/1 |
| PU | Inis Cara (IRE) | Venetia Williams | B J Crowley | 66/1 |
| PU | Smarty (IRE) | Mark Pitman | Tom Scudamore | 16/1 |
| PU | Ackzo | Ferdy Murphy | D Gallagher | 25/1 |
| PU | Murt's Man (IRE) | Paul Nicholls | Andrew Thornton | 66/1 |
| UR | Djeddah (FR) | F Doumen | T Doumen | 66/1 |
| UR | Frantic Tan (IRE) | Nigel Twiston-Davies | T Jenks | 50/1 |
| UR | Alexander Banquet (IRE) | W P Mullins | Barry Geraghty | 22/1 |
| UR | Spot Thedifference I (IRE) | E Bolger | D J Casey | 33/1 |
| UR | Beau (IRE) | Nigel Twiston-Davies | Carl Llewellyn | 11/1 |
| UR | Red Ark | N B Mason | Kenny Johnson | 50/1 |
| UR | Lyreen Wonder | A L T Moore | B M Cash | 40/1 |
Impact On Twiston‑Davies And The Yard
Beyond the bare result, the 2002 Grand National had significant personal and professional consequences for Nigel Twiston‑Davies.
In the seasons leading up to the race, his tally of winners had dipped, and he later admitted that a change of career had been under consideration if success at the top level did not return.
Twiston‑Davies subsequently revealed that he would have retired had Bindaree not won the race, underlining how pivotal this single performance was to the future of his operation.
The victory instead sparked a renaissance at Grange Hill Farm. In the years that followed, Twiston‑Davies trained a string of high‑class horses, notably Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Imperial Commander, high‑class chaser Bristol De Mai, and top hurdler The New One, a sequence of big winners that might never have materialised without Bindaree’s Aintree success.
The horse thus became widely described as the runner to whom three members of the Twiston‑Davies family – Nigel and his jockey sons Sam and Willy – effectively owed their careers.
Bindaree’s Later Life
Bindaree continued to race after 2002, with his Welsh Grand National victory in 2003 confirming his status as one of the most durable staying chasers of his era.
He eventually retired back to Twiston‑Davies’ Grange Hill Farm, where he remained in familiar surroundings and became a much‑loved resident for years after his racing days were over.
Well into his late twenties, he was still being publicly celebrated before he died in September 2024 at the age of 30, prompting a fresh wave of tributes from the racing community and media coverage that revisited his Grand National heroics.
From a historical perspective, the 2002 Grand National encapsulates many of the elements that define the race’s enduring appeal.
There was the big‑field chaos, the punishing nature of the fences and distance, the heartbreak for connections who thought the race was won, and the emotional swing of a horse coming back off the canvas on the famous run‑in.
For racing fans, Bindaree stands as a reminder that proven stamina, sound jumping, and sheer tenacity can trump market position, especially in a race where only a fraction of the field is still going at the business end.
On any retrospective of modern Grand National renewals, the image of Bindaree surging past What’s Up Boys within sight of the post remains one of the defining visual memories of the early 2000s at Aintree.
