Mark Johnston (born 10 October 1959) is a Scottish racehorse trainer based in

Middleham Middleham is an English market town and civil parish in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire. It lies in Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dales, on the south side of the valley, upstream from the junction of the River Ure and River Cover. ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Born in Glasgow, he studied at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

and is a qualified vet. He started training at a stable near

Louth, Lincolnshire Louth () is a market town and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England.OS Explorer map 283:Louth and Mablethorpe: (1:25 000): Louth serves as an important town for a large rural area of eastern Lincolnshire. Visitor ...

in 1987, and his first winner was Hinari Video at

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...

He has been training in Middleham since 1988 when he purchased Kingsley House (often falsely attributed to be the former home of

Charles Kingsley Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the working ...

, author of '' The Water Babies''). In 2004 he won the

1,000 Guineas The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 ...

with Attraction. Other successful horses he has trained are Mister Baileys, winner of the 2,000 Guineas,

Shamardal Shamardal (27 March 2002 – 16 April 2020) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in the United Kingdom and in France and was voted the 2004 European Champion Two-Year-Old. Background Bred at Watercress Farm in Paris, Kentucky, Shamardal w ...

, 2004 European Champion Two-Year-Old, and Double Trigger, winner of the Ascot Gold Cup. Johnston's horses are known for their front running style and bravery in a finish, two attributes that were best advertised by the exploits of Attraction. He cites

as the best horse he ever trained, and Attraction as the one he is most proud of. He reached his 4,000th winner on the flat in Britain when Dominating won at

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the towns in the City of Wake ...

on Monday 23 October 2017. He is only the third trainer in either code to reach that figure. On 23 August 2018 Mark Johnson became the most successful British Flat Trainer of all time when

Frankie Dettori Lanfranco Dettori (; born 15 December 1970), better known as Frankie Dettori, is an Italian horse racing jockey based in the United Kingdom. Dettori has been British flat racing Champion Jockey three times and has ...

rode Poet's Society to win the 3.00 at

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

at odds of 20–1 to give Mark his 4,194 winner. The motto of the stable is "Always Trying". He is married to Deirdre, a former teacher.

Major wins

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

1,000 Guineas The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 ...

- (1) - '' Attraction (2004)'' * 2,000 Guineas - (1) - '' Mister Baileys (1994)'' * Ascot Gold Cup - (4) - '' Double Trigger (1995), Royal Rebel (2001, 2002),

Subjectivist Subjectivism is the doctrine that "our own mental activity is the only unquestionable fact of our experience", instead of shared or communal, and that there is no external or objective truth. The success of this position is historically attribute ...

(2021)'' *

Cheveley Park Stakes The Cheveley Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it ...

- (1) - '' Lumiere (2015)'' *

Coronation Stakes The Coronation Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 7 furlong and 213 yards (1,603 metres), and it is schedul ...

- (1) - '' Attraction (2004)'' *

Dewhurst Stakes The Dewhurst Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres ...

- (1) - ''

(2004)'' *

Falmouth Stakes The Falmouth Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,6 ...

- (1) - '' Nahoodh (2008)'' *

Middle Park Stakes The Middle Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is ...

- (2) - '' Awzaan (2009), The Last Lion (2016)'' * St. James's Palace Stakes - (1) - ''

Bijou d'Inde Bijou d'Inde (9 March 1993 – 19 June 2010) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Bred in Hampshire and trained in Yorkshire he was a natural front-runner who was best at distances of around one mile. As a two-year-old he showed v ...

(1996)'' * Sun Chariot Stakes - (1) - '' Attraction (2004)'' ---- France *

Critérium de Saint-Cloud The Critérium de Saint-Cloud is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Saint-Cloud over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is sche ...

- (2) - '' Gear Up (2020), Dubai Mile (2022) '' *

Prix Royal-Oak The Prix Royal-Oak is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 3,100 metres (about 1 mile and 7½ furlongs), a ...

- (1) - ''Subjectivist (2020)'' ----

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

* Bayerisches Zuchtrennen - (1) - ''Lady Jane Digby (2010)'' *

Preis von Europa The Preis von Europa is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Cologne over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is scheduled to take place ea ...

- (1) - '' Jukebox Jury (2009)'' *

Rheinland-Pokal The Grosser Preis von Bayern is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Munich Racecourse over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is scheduled to take place each year ...

- (1) - ''Yavana's Pace (2002)'' *

German 1,000 Guineas The German 1,000 Guineas is a Group 2 flat horse race in Germany open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Düsseldorf over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to take place each ...

- (2) - ''Nyaleti (2018)'', ''Main Edition'' (2019) ----

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Irish 1,000 Guineas The Irish 1,000 Guineas is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is scheduled ...

- (1) - '' Attraction (2004)'' *

Irish St. Leger The Irish St Leger is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 6 furlongs (2,816 metres), and it i ...

- (1) - ''Jukebox Jury (dead heat 2011)'' * Matron Stakes - (1) - '' Attraction (2005)'' *

Phoenix Stakes The Phoenix Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is sc ...

- (1) - '' Princely Heir (1997)'' ----

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Gran Criterium The Gran Criterium is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Milan over a distance of 1,500 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to take place each year in October. The event ...

- (3) - ''Lend a Hand (1997), Pearl of Love (2003), Kirklees (2006)'' ----

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

Dubai Sheema Classic The Dubai Sheema Classic is a Group 1 flat horse race in the United Arab Emirates open to thoroughbreds which are four-years-old or above. It is run over a distance of 2,400 metres (approximately miles; 2410 metres since 2010) on the turf track a ...

- (1) - ''Fruits of Love (1999)''

References

1959 births Living people British racehorse trainers People from Middleham {{UK-horseracing-bio-stub

Major wins

See also

References