Arthur Edward "Scobie" Breasley (7 May 1914 – 21 December 2006) was an Australian

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 ...

. He won the

Caulfield Cup The Caulfield Cup is a Melbourne Racing Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race held under handicap conditions, although the Melbourne Racing Club is in the process of turning the race into weight for age (WFA) conditions. This is for all horses ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

five times: 1942-45 consecutively on

Tranquil Star Tranquil Star (foaled in 1937) was one of the hardiest and best performed Australian-bred Thoroughbred race-mares. She is the only mare to have won the double of the Caulfield Stakes, now known as the Yalumba Stakes, and the Cox Plate, which is ...

, Skipton, Counsel and St Fairy; then on Peshawar in 1952. He also won The Derby twice, and the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

once.

Early life

Breasley was born in 1914 in

Wagga Wagga Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 56,000 as of June 2018, Wagga Wagga is the state's la ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

and was christened Arthur Edward, but while still very young was given the nickname "Scobie", after the famous Australian trainer and jockey

James Scobie James Scobie (29 November 1826 – 7 October 1854) was a Scottish gold digger murdered at Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. His death was associated with a sequence of events which led to the Eureka Rebellion. At the later Supreme Court trial in ...

Career

Breasley rode 3,251 winners during his career, including over 1,000 in Australia and 2,161 in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

. He rode over 100 winners in

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 ...

every year from 1955 to 1964, and was Champion Jockey in 1957 and continuously from 1961–63. He won the

for the only time on

Ballymoss Ballymoss (1954–1979) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse. In a racing career that lasted from 1956 until November 1958, he ran seventeen times and won eight races. In 1957, he became the first horse trained in Ireland to win the St Leger ...

in 1958, and the Derby for the first time at the age of 50 on

Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...

in 1964, then again on

Charlottown Charlottown (1963 – 1979) was a Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career which lasted from 1965 until 1967 he ran ten times and won seven races. He is best known for winning the 1966 Derby. Background Charlottown was bred in England by his ...

in 1966, aged 52. He developed a great rivalry with Sir Gordon Richards, and later with the younger jockey

Lester Piggott Lester Keith Piggott (5 November 1935 – 29 May 2022) was an English professional jockey and trainer. With 4,493 career flat racing wins in Britain, including a record nine Epsom Derby victories, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest f ...

. He was renowned for his exquisite balance in the saddle, for refusing to race wide, and for his sparing use of the whip, preferring to use hands and heels.

Retirement

Breasley retired as a jockey in 1968 and took up training in

Epsom Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...

(UK), France, the United States, and

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

, where he and his wife owned a holiday home. He retired from training horses after winning the most prestigious race in Barbados - the Gold Cup - on four occasions in the early 1990s and returned to live in

. Racing authorities in the state of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

struck a medal in his honour, awarded annually since 1996 to the best jockey in the state. On its formation, Scobie Breasley was the first person inducted into the

Australian Racing Hall of Fame The Australian Racing Hall of Fame is part of the Australian Racing Museum which documents and honours the horseracing legends of Australia. The museum officially opened in 1981 and created the Hall of Fame in 2000. The numbers in brackets afte ...

. In 1999, the

Racing Post ''Racing Post'' is a British daily horse racing, greyhound racing and sports betting publisher which is published in print and digital formats. It is printed in tabloid format from Monday to Sunday. , it has an average daily circulation of 6 ...

ranked Breasley as tenth in their list of the Top 50 jockeys of the 20th century.

Death

Scobie Breasley died on 21 December 2006 after suffering a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

a few days earlier.Jockey Scobie Breasley dead at 92
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References

External links

Museum of the Riverina Website feature

Australian Racing Museum and Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:Breasley, Scobie 1914 births 2006 deaths Australian jockeys Australian racehorse trainers Australian Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees Sportspeople from Wagga Wagga British Champion flat jockeys