Nigel Twiston-Davies (born 16 May 1957,

Crickhowell Crickhowell (; cy, Crucywel , non-standard spelling ') is a town and community in southeastern Powys, Wales, near Abergavenny, and is in the historic county of Brecknockshire. Location The town lies on the River Usk, on the southern edge ...

) is a British

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

trainer specialising in

National Hunt In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

racing. He is based at stables at

Naunton Naunton is a village in Gloucestershire, England. It lies on the River Windrush in the Cotswolds, an area of outstanding natural beauty. Stow-on-the-Wold is about 6 miles to the east. Community The population of Naunton in 2000 was 371, whic ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of ...

. He began training in 1981 and sent out his first winner, Last of the Foxes, at

Hereford Racecourse Hereford Racecourse is a horse racing venue located in Hereford, Herefordshire, England, owned by Herefordshire Council and operated by Arena Racing Company. The course is almost square in shape with a circuit of about a mile-and-a-half.''Bri ...

in 1982. He has trained over 1000 winners under National Hunt rules including two winners of the

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap st ...

with

Earth Summit The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the Rio Conference or the Earth Summit (Portuguese: ECO92), was a major United Nations conference held in Rio de Janeiro from June 3 to June 14, 1992. Earth Su ...

in 1998 and

Bindaree Bindaree is a racehorse who was the winner of the 2002 Grand National when ridden by Jim Culloty and the 2003 Welsh Grand National The Coral Welsh Grand National is a Premier Handicap National Hun ...

in 2002, and the winner of the 2010 Cheltenham Gold Cup with

Imperial Commander ''Imperial Commander'' is a 15mm science fiction war game, based on the range of metal '' Laserburn'' miniatures available from Tabletop Games. Written by Richard Halliwell and Bryan Ansell in 1981, the game still has a small but enthusiastic fo ...

. He also trained Imperial Commander to win the Ryanair Chase at the 2009

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 Ra ...

Personal life

His sons, Sam and William, both became jockeys. William retired in 2017.

Cheltenham winners (17)

Cheltenham Gold Cup The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt horse race run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse in England, over a distance of about 3 miles 2½ furlongs (3 ...

- (1)

(2010 *

Supreme Novices' Hurdle The Supreme Novices' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of abo ...

- (1) Arctic Kinsman (1994) * Ballymore Novices' Hurdle - (3) Gaelstrom (1993), Fundamentalist (2004), The New One (2013) * Broadway Novices' Chase - (2) Young Hustler (1993), Blaklion (2016) *

Triumph Hurdle The Triumph Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles and 1 f ...

- (1) Upgrade (1998) *

Champion Bumper The Champion Bumper is a Grade 1 National Hunt flat race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four to six years. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles and ½ f ...

- (1) Ballyandy (2016) * Ryanair Chase - (1)

(2009) * Festival Trophy Handicap Chase - (1) Tipping Tim (1992) * National Hunt Chase Challenge Cup - (1) Tricky Trickster (2009) *

Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase The Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase is a Grade 3 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a d ...

- (1) Pigeon Island (2010) *

Pertemps Final The Pertemps Final is a Grade Three National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 3 ...

- (2) Rubhahunish (2000), Ballyfitz (2008) * Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup - (1) Same Difference (2013) * St James's Place Festival Hunter Chase - (1) Baby Run (2010)

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 ...

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap st ...

- (2)

(1998),

(2002) *

Betfair Chase The Betfair Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of about 3 miles and furlongs (3 miles 1 furlong a ...

- (4)

(2010), Bristol De Mai (2017,2018,2020) * Long Walk Hurdle - (2) Sweet Duke (1993), Ocean Hawk (1996) * Kauto Star Novices' Chase - (2) Dakyns Boy (1992), Ollie Magern (2004) *

Finale Juvenile Hurdle The Finale Juvenile Hurdle is a Grade 2 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged three years. It is run at Chepstow over a distance of about 2 miles (2 miles and 11 yards, o ...

- (1) Bristol De Mai (2014) *

Challow Novices' Hurdle The Challow Novices' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Newbury over a distance of about 2 miles and 4½ furlongs (2 ...

- (2) King's Road (1998),

(1999) * Ascot Chase - (1) Riders Onthe Storm (2020) *

Scilly Isles Novices' Chase The Scilly Isles Novices' Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain, which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of around two mil ...

- (3) Young Hustler (1993), Jack Doyle (1998), Bristol De Mai (2016) *

Manifesto Novices' Chase The Manifesto Novices' Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and 4 furlongs (2 miles, 3 furlo ...

- (1) Flying Angel (2017) * Aintree Hurdle - (3) Mister Morose (2000), Khyber Kim (2010), The New One (2014) * Sefton Novices' Hurdle - (3) King's Road (1999), Pettifour (2008), Ballyoptic (2016) *

Liverpool Hurdle The Liverpool Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 3 miles and ½ furlong ...

- (2) Mrs Muck (1987), Sweet Duke (1993) Ireland *

Champion INH Flat Race The Champion INH Flat Race is a Grade 1 National Hunt flat race in Ireland for amateur riders which is open to horses aged four to seven years. It is run at Punchestown over a distance of about 2 miles and ½ furlong ( ...

- (1) King's Road (1998) * Champion Stayers Hurdle - (1) Rubhahunish (2000)

References

External links

Nigel Twiston-Davies' website

Profile in Grand National Guide
1957 births Living people People from Cotswold District British racehorse trainers

Nigel Twiston-Davies Nigel Twiston-Davies (born 16 May 1957, Crickhowell) is a British racehorse trainer specialising in National Hunt racing. He is based at stables at Naunton, Gloucestershire. He began training in 1981 and sent out his first winner, Last of the Fo ...

People from Crickhowell {{UK-horseracing-bio-stub