Ruby Walsh hails influence and wisdom of father Ted

From the 20-year-old who won the grand national, to the rider who reached the top on both sides of the Irish Sea, Ruby Walsh’s career has been a constant stream of success at the highest level. But most of that, he told the audience at the Everyman Theatre, is down to the wisdom of one man — his father, Ted.

A devoted family man with three children of his own, Walsh admits it’s the influence of his father which has shaped his career from the beginning, and his influence is as important now as it was 20 years ago.

A cursory glance at the CV of Walsh reveals the rider to have been in positions of prestige almost uninterrupted since he began riding, but his father, pulling the strings from behind and in front of the curtains, has been instrumental in helping him make the right choices along the way.