Brian Taylor (戴萊) (6 July 1939 – 10 December 1984) was a successful

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

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 ...

horse racing 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 ...

best known for riding

Snow Knight Snow Knight (28 February 1971 – 15 September 1992) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who won Britain's most prestigious race in 1974, the Derby, then the following year earned an Eclipse Award as the American Champion Male Turf Horse. Backgrou ...

to victory in the 1974

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surre ...

. Taylor was born in

Southend-on-Sea Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north ...

, in

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

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 ...

. Among his other career wins were the

Princess Margaret Stakes The Princess Margaret Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to take ...

(1971),

Cherry Hinton Stakes The Duchess of Cambridge Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), a ...

(1971), Cork and Orrery Stakes (1973),

Earl of Sefton Stakes The Earl of Sefton Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile and 1 furlong (1,811 metres) on the Rowley Mile ...

(1977),

Sandown Classic Trial The Sandown Classic Trial is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 1 furlong and 209 yards ...

(1978),

July Cup The July Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres ...

(1971),

Derby Stakes The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey on ...

(1974, on

John Porter Stakes The John Porter Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs () a ...

(1981),

Ormonde Stakes The Ormonde Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 5 furlongs and 84 yards () at Ches ...

(1981),

Craven Stakes The Craven Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old colts and geldings. It is run over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres ...

(1983), and in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, the

Prix Gontaut-Biron The Prix Gontaut-Biron is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled to ...

(1984). While racing at the

Sha Tin Racecourse Sha Tin Racecourse is one of the two racecourses for horse racing in Hong Kong. It is located in Sha Tin in the New Territories. It is managed by Hong Kong Jockey Club. Penfold Park is encircled by the track, and the Hong Kong Sports I ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

on 8 December 1984, his mount, Silver Star (銀星一號), stumbled, throwing him off his saddle while crossing the finish line. Taylor would succumb two days later in

Hong Kong Sanatorium and Hospital Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital, or HKSH, is a private hospital established in 1922 in Happy Valley, Hong Kong. The hospital has more than 500 beds and various room types and facilities. It also has a 24 hours outpatient consultation service. ...

from the serious neck and head injuries he had received. Taylor had suffered from shingles however had recovered, his friend Bill Burnett wanted him to find someone else to replace him for that race in fact English Wally Hood offered to take the ride. At the last minute, however, he decided to do the race himself which turned out to be his last. Less than 10 months before Taylor's fall, Silver Star also ended the career of another top jockey at the time, Frenchman

Philippe Paquet Philippe Paquet is a former champion jockey from France, who in 1974 was the winner of the Prix du Jockey Club on Caracolero, and the Gran Premio d'Italia on Ribecourt. In 1976, he also won the Irish Derby on Malacate, and the Irish Oaks on Lagun ...

, by throwing the jockey onto the sand track during morning training on 13 February 1984, in similar fashion. Paquet suffered a fractured skull and remained in a coma for more than three months before regaining consciousness.

References

1939 births 1984 deaths English jockeys Jockeys who died while racing Sport deaths in Hong Kong Sportspeople from Southend-on-Sea {{England-horseracing-bio-stub