Kitty's Light (foaled 11 February 2016) is a British

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse who competes in National Hunt races. In 2023 he completed a rare double in winning the

Scottish Grand National The Scottish Grand National is a Grade 3 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Ayr, Scotland, over a distance of about 4 miles (3 ...

and, a week later, the Bet365 Gold Cup. He is trained by Christian Williams and ridden in most of his races by Jack Tudor.

Background

Kitty's Light is a bay gelding with a white

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

. His dam, Daraiyna, was bred in France and finished third in her only race; his sire,

Nathaniel , nickname = {{Plainlist, * Nat * Nate , footnotes = Nathaniel is an English variant of the biblical Greek name Nathanael. People with the name Nathaniel * Nathaniel Archibald (1952–2018), American basketball player * Nate A ...

, was bred in Ireland and won the 2011 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. As a yearling, Kitty's Light was bought for 5000 guineas and sent into training with Christian Williams near

Bridgend Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the Old Bridge, Bridgend, medieval bridge ...

in South Wales.

Racing career

2019/20 season

Kitty's Light made his first appearance on a racecourse in October 2019, when he was unplaced in a bumper ( National Hunt flat race) at

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cromwell was born there ...

2020/21 season

In July 2020, the four-year-old raced three times over hurdles, his best result being a third at Southwell. He then won on his first outing over fences, a novice chase at Southwell on 4 August. Over the rest of the summer and autumn he ran in another four handicap chases, with two wins, a second and a third place, ridden by conditional jockey Jack Tudor, who would become his regular jockey. After a break of two months, he returned to the racecourse in early 2021, coming fourth and third in two bumpers at

Lingfield Lingfield can refer to: * Lingfield, County Durham, England, a village * Lingfield, Surrey, England, a village ** Lingfield Park Racecourse ** Lingfield Cricket Club, prominent in the 18th century ** Lingfield railway station, serving the villag ...

. He was then unplaced in a handicap hurdle race before winning the Borders Handicap Chase at Kelso. His final race of the season was the Bet365 Gold Cup at

Sandown Park Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse racing ...

on 24 April 2021. Starting at 9/1 in a field of sixteen, he was held up in the rear and in fifth place at the last fence. Putting in a strong challenge on the straight, he was hampered by favourite Enrilo who was drifting in the lead and he finished third, three-quarters of a

length Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Interna ...

behind Enrilo and a short head behind Potterman. After a stewards' enquiry, Enrilo was demoted to third place, and Kitty's Light was given second place behind Potterman, although he was seen as having deserved to win the race.

2021/2022 season

Kitty's Light raced eight times over the season without any wins. He achieved second place in four of his races, including the Grade 2

Charlie Hall Chase The Charlie Hall Chase is a Grade 2 National Hunt steeplechase in England which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Wetherby over a distance of about 3 miles (3 miles and 45 y ...

Wetherby Wetherby () is a market town and civil parish in the City of Leeds district, West Yorkshire, England, close to West Yorkshire county's border with North Yorkshire, and lies approximately from Leeds City Centre, from York and from Harrogat ...

, the Coral Trophy Handicap Chase at Kempton Park and the Grade 3

Ayr Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire council area and the historic county town of Ayrshire. With a population ...

behind stable mate Win My Wings. The season ended with third place behind Hewick in the Bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown Park, in which he started favourite.

2022/23 season

After five starts in which he did not get within 18 lengths of the winner, Kitty's Light achieved his first win for nearly two years when he beat The Galloping Bear by two-and-a-half lengths in the

Eider Chase The Eider Chase is National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain. It is run at Newcastle Racecourse in February, over a distance of about 4 miles and furlong (4 miles and 122 yards, or ) and during the rac ...

at Newcastle on 25 February 2023. After a break of two months, he started 4/1 joint favourite in the Scottish Grand National. Held up in midfield, he went into the lead two out and, in spite of a mistake at the last, went on strongly to win by three lengths from Coopers Cross. After the race jockey Jack Tudor said: "He’s a legend. He’s small and he's not a brilliant jumper and he's been trained to the absolute minute." It was an emotional win for his trainer, whose daughter had recently been diagnosed with leukaemia. Just a week after his victory at Ayr, Kitty's Light returned to the racecourse to complete a rare double in winning the Bet365 Chase at Sandown. The only other horse to win both races in the same year was Hot Weld in 2007.

2023/24 season

Kitty's Light ran three times over hurdles and once over fences between October and December without success. After a break of two and half months he made his first appearance at the

Cheltenham Festival The Cheltenham Festival is a horse racing-based meeting in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, with race prize money second only to the Grand National. The four-day festival takes place annually in March at Cheltenham Rac ...

, coming seventh in the Festival Trophy Handicap Chase. His 2023/24 campaign had been aimed at the 2024 Grand National at Aintree on 13 April, and he just managed to creep in at the bottom of the weights as number 34 in a field of 34 runners. Starting at 12/1, Kitty's Light raced in midfield, going third after 3 out and jumping the last up with the leaders, only to fade on the run-in. He finished in fifth place, ten and a half lengths behind winner I Am Maximus, and was the best-placed of the British-trained runners. His trainer said: ""It was wonderful to watch and we're very proud. A long way out he was travelling sweetly and jumping well... He's a wonderful horse and we're very lucky to have him". Jockey Jack Tudor said: ""He ran an unbelievable race and jumped really well. It was great fun. There were no hard-luck stories, he just wasn't quite good enough to win."

References

{{Reflist 2016 racehorse births National Hunt racehorses Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom