Blackmore's achievements recognised with another award On the back of a truly remarkable year, Rachael Blackmore has been named The Irish Times/Sport Ireland Sportswoman of the Year for 2021. In what was an outstanding year for Irish sportswomen, Rachael recorded a number of historic firsts during the spring months. She became the first woman to claim the leading jockey title at Cheltenham, counting the Champion Hurdle on the still unbeaten Honeysuckle among her Festival wins. And only a matter of weeks later, she steered home 11/1 chance Minella Times to win the Aintree Grand National, the first woman to do so in the race’s 172-year history. Rachael said, “It’s been such an incredible year for sport and particularly for women in sport. To be nominated is fantastic but to win an award like this, it’s so special, it really is. When you look at the people you are up against and their achievements, it is hard to comprehend that you’ve come out on top of that, it’s unbelievable.” Suzanne Eade, CEO of Horse Racing Ireland, said, “Being crowned Irish Times Sport Ireland Sportswoman of the Year is all the more special because of the great success enjoyed by Irish sportswomen in 2021. Rachael is a true icon of our wonderful sport and is a most deserving winner of this award.” On Wednesday, Rachael was the winner of the Irish Racing Hero Award at the annual Horse Racing Ireland Awards. She is very much in the running for both the RTÉ Sport Sportsperson of the Year award and the BBC's World Sport Star of the Year 2021 award.
