Ann Ferris: The Woman Who Made Grand National History 37 Years Before Rachael Blackmore

When Rachael Blackmore rode Minella Times to victory at Aintree in 2021, she became the first female jockey to win the Grand National.

It was rightly treated as one of the great moments in the long history of the race.

But 37 years earlier, another Irishwoman had already broken one of racing's biggest barriers.

Her name was Ann Ferris, and in 1984 she became the first woman to win the Irish Grand National when she partnered 33/1 outsider Bentom Boy to a remarkable victory at Fairyhouse.

It was not only a landmark result for female jockeys. It was also one of the great family stories in National Hunt racing.

Bentom Boy and an Extraordinary Family National

The 1984 Irish Grand National attracted a field of 29 runners, and Bentom Boy was hardly the obvious winner.

He carried just 9st 9lb and officially started at 33/1, although reports suggest that odds of 100/1 had been available with some bookmakers. Even more striking was the Tote dividend, which reportedly returned at 322/1.

Yet there was nothing lucky about the way he won.

Ferris brought Bentom Boy home 12 lengths clear of 20/1 outsider Sicilian Answer.

Then came another twist.

Finishing a further five lengths away in third was Dawson Prince, ridden by Ann's sister, Rosemary Stewart.

Both horses were trained by their father, Willie Rooney.

One father had therefore trained the first and third in the Irish Grand National, with his two daughters riding them.

Rooney reportedly summed up the afternoon with a wonderful line:

“I must be the champion sire of National Hunt jockeys!”

It is difficult to imagine a racing family having a much better Easter Monday.

Ann Ferris Had Already Been Making History

The Fairyhouse victory might have introduced Ferris to a much wider audience, but she had been beating male riders for years.

She rode her first point-to-point winner when she was just 14 and became All Ireland Champion point-to-point rider in 1976, recording 23 winners during a period when the point-to-point season had far fewer fixtures than today.

Her sister Rosemary had made history herself in 1974 when she won a bumper at Naas aboard Mourneview.

Two years later Ann became the first woman to beat male riders over hurdles in Ireland, winning aboard her father's Meadow Manor at Down Royal.

There were major wins too.

In 1979 Ferris partnered Irian to victory in the Irish Sweeps Hurdle, then one of the most valuable and important hurdle races in Ireland. She also enjoyed success in the Ulster National.

So when she arrived at Fairyhouse in 1984, she was certainly not there simply to make up the numbers.

Where Ann Ferris Fits Into Grand National History

Ferris's story becomes even more interesting when placed alongside the history of women riding in the Grand National at Aintree.

Charlotte Brew had become the first woman to take part in the Aintree race in 1977, riding Barony Fort.

Geraldine Rees then became the first woman to complete the course when she finished eighth aboard Cheers in 1982.

Just two years later, Ferris went considerably further by winning the Irish version.

It would be another 27 years before a second woman won the Irish Grand National.

That came in 2011 when Nina Carberry rode Organisedconfusion to victory for trainer Arthur Moore. Katie Walsh followed in 2015 aboard Thunder And Roses.

Walsh was also making progress at Aintree. In 2012 she rode Seabass into third place, at the time the best finish ever achieved by a female jockey in the Grand National.

Then, on April 10, 2021, Rachael Blackmore and Minella Times finally won it.

Blackmore became the first woman in the long history of the Aintree Grand National to pass the winning post in front.

From Ann Ferris to Rachael Blackmore

There was a lovely connection between those two historic National victories.

Following Blackmore's win in 2021, Ferris appeared in an RTÉ News feature to reflect on what had happened at Aintree and on her own place in racing history.

By then the sight of women competing against men in major National Hunt races was entirely normal.

It had not been that way when Ann and Rosemary started riding.

Ferris died peacefully on June 22, 2022, leaving behind a racing record that deserves to be remembered well beyond Ireland.

Rachael Blackmore, Nina Carberry and Katie Walsh became household names to a later generation of racing fans.

But before all three of them, Ann Ferris was already proving what could be done.

And that day at Fairyhouse in 1984 remains very hard to top: a 33/1 Irish Grand National winner ridden by one daughter, a third-placed horse ridden by another, and their father responsible for training both.

It was a huge moment for women in racing.

It was also one extraordinary family day at the races.