Kieren Fallon
Kieren Fallon, born in Crusheen of Ireland, is a successful horse racing jockey whose career has both been marked by successes and marred by controversy. A remarkably talented rider, Kieren Fallon has been named British Champion Jockey on six occasions.
Jockey Kieren Fallon was born on 22 February 1965. Fallon rode Piccadilly Lord, his first winner in 1984 with trainer Kevin Predergast. In 1988 he moved to England so that he could ride with Jimmy Fitzgerald. He accepted an offer to become first jockey for Lynda Ramsden in 1993. He gained a fine first in a race at the Thirsk Racecourse. Trouble struck for Kieren Fallon in 1994. During a race at Beverley, Fallon pulled another jockey from his horse and was therefore banned from racing for 6 months.
In 1997, Fallon worked as a stable jockey for Henry Cecil and won his first championship. Again he gained the championship in 1998, followed by his 3rd championship title in 1999. He left Henry Cecil in 2000 and joined Sir Michael Stoute. Unfortunately he met with an accident at Royal Ascot in that same year, resulting in a major shoulder injury. Kieren Fallon was back on the racetrack in 2001 and was criticized for not performing as he had in the past. He proved them wrong by winning his 4th championship, followed by his 5th in 2002. His 6th and last championship victory came in 2003. 2004 was another successful year when he won the Oaks-Derby double with North Light and Ouija Board. Victories in his racing career have included the 1000 Guineas, Ascot Gold Cup, Coronation Cup, Eclipse Stakes, Nassau Stakes, Queen Anne Stakes, Yorkshire Oaks, Irish Derby, Phoenix Stakes, Grand Prix de Paris, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Hong Kong Vase, Dubai Sheema Classic and many more.
Unfortunately in 2004 Kieren Fallon’s career was marred by allegation of match fixing. Along with two other jockeys, Fallon was arrested by the police whilst they were investigating the fixing of 80 races over a period of 2 years. They denied the allegations but have been charged with conspiracy to defraud. Fallon was again charged with conspiring to defraud in 2006 in regard to Betfair, resulting in the suspension of his license. Kieren Fallon has been banned from racing in Great Britain but continued to ride in Ireland. In November 2006 he was suspended after he tested positive for a metabolite of a prohibited substance. This suspension began on 7 December 2006 and was set for a period of six months.
