Michael Jarvis, who was at the top of the British training ranks until his
retirement early this year, died on Tuesday after a battle with cancer. He was
73.
Famed as the handler of such luminaries as Rakti, Carroll House and Eswarah
(GB), the Newmarket-based Jarvis had handed over the reins to Roger Varian at
Kremlin House Stables before the start of the current season.
Varian led the tributes Tuesday when saying, “It’s a terribly sad day.
Michael passed away this afternoon having lost his battle against cancer. His
achievements and racing exploits go without saying, but first and foremost he
was a wonderful man, a true gentleman and I imagine a great husband, a great
father and a good friend to many. That was Michael Jarvis. He happened to be a
great racehorse trainer as well, but first and foremost he was just a wonderful
man. He won many big races, but probably put up the bravest fight of his life
against cancer. He battled hard and he saw it out as long as he possibly could.”
Jarvis, who leaves a widow, Gay, and three daughters, Sarah, Lisa and Jackie,
was the son of the former National Hunt jockey Andrew and, after riding three
winners, became head lad to Towser Gosden and then Gordon Smyth. When under the
latter’s auspices, he led up the 1966 Epsom Derby hero Charlottown. Jarvis set
up on his own in 1928, and enjoyed an eight-year spell as one of David
Robinson’s private trainers at Carlburg Stables. After moves to Clarehaven
Stables and Pegasus Stables, Jarvis established himself at Kremlin House, and
his early career was marked by the success of Tudor Music, Petong, Bob Back and
Beldale Flutter. Later, he would join the top-flight of Newmarket’s trainers
when saddling numerous Group 1 winners, including the 1989 Prix de l’Arc de
Triomphe (Fr-G1) hero Carroll House, the 2000 Prix du Jockey Club (Fr-G1) winner
Holding Court, the 2001 One Thousand Guineas (Eng-G1) heroine Ameerat (GB) and
2005 Epsom Oaks (Eng-G1) winner Eswarah.
His greatest achiever proved to be the ex-Italian Rakti, who annexed five
races at the top level for Kremlin House, including the 2003 Champion S.
(Eng-G1) and 2004 Prince of Wales’s S. (Eng-G1). Rakti’s rider Philip Robinson
was on hand to pay his respects Tuesday.
“It’s really heartbreaking news; I was trying to get to see him at the
weekend, but I was informed by Gay that he was in a very bad way and not able to
talk,” Robinson said. “It’s very sad and, at the end of the day, all you can say
is that he was a very nice man and, in all the years I’ve had anything to do
with him, I’ve never known anybody say a bad word about him. That for me sums it
up. As people say, he was a gentleman and he wasn’t just a normal trainer — he
was an exceptional trainer, who was able to get the best out of horses — not
just in training them but in placing them. He had it down to a fine art. We had
a run of a few exceptional years when we won the French Derby with Holding Court
and then Rakti came along. We had a purple run and it was lovely to be there
with him. At the time, we enjoyed it and I’m pleased to have been there with
him.”
Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s connection with Jarvis was fairly
recent, stemming from Eswarah in 2005, and the owner-breeder’s Racing Manager
Angus Gold said, “He was such a special man who looked after his horses. He
didn’t make mass entries for his horses and, if he entered them in one race,
they invariably ran in it. He kept it very simple, and at the same time made it
great fun. We were lucky, as altogether we got off to a great start with Eswarah
when Ben Hanbury retired and she was transferred across to Michael. He knew his
horses inside out and knew all their foibles. He got the best out of them and,
if you ask any trainer the man they most respected in the ranks, it would be
Michael.
“Michael and Gay treated Roger (Varian) as a son and nurtured his career, and
it has been a seamless transition,” Gold added.
Mick Kinane, who partnered Carroll House to win the Irish Champion S. and
Arc, also paid tribute.
“It’s very sad news,” Kinane told PA Sport. “He was a lovely man to ride for
and a lovely man to know. He was a thorough gentleman and such a lovely man.
It’s so unfortunate that he didn’t get to enjoy his retirement, and such is
life.”