RED RUM, Aldaniti, Tiger Roll. Very rarely does a Grand National go by without a tear-jerking tale that leaves a lump in the throat.
But never before has the real thing come close to this year . . . an animated running of the world’s greatest race.
The 2020 National may have only been a high tech animated version — but there was nothing virtual about the money it raised.
When the final figure was announced yesterday afternoon, it was a genuine jaw-dropper . . . a staggering £2.6 million for NHS Charities. Unbelievable. Incredible. Astonishing.
Bookmakers, punters, trainers and jockeys bought into it as if it was the genuine article . . . every single member of the horseracing family played a part.
And all of it organised in little more than a blink of an eye.
Bookies — so often portrayed as the pantomime villains — agreed this year they would take bets on the race, and every penny profit would go to charity.
The gesture went from conception to reality in just over 48 hours.
Even then, though, a six figure sum was the realistic ambition.
Certainly nothing like the final total.
Beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. And at a time when other sports are arguing over how, why, when and what they should do.
Less than three days — that’s all it took for horse racing to get its act together and show how it can be done.
Are you watching Premier League?
They call racing the sport of kings, but you know what, it really isn’t. It’s actually the sport of the people.
The sport of the nation — and every one of you who helped raise that £2.6m should be as proud as punch.
Now excuse me for a second. I seem to have something in my eye . . .
