Harry Wragg
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Harry Wragg (1902 – 1985) was a British jockey and trainer.
Wragg became a jockey in 1920. The Champion Jockey in 1941, he rode 13 winners of British Classic Races, as follows:
- 1,000 Guineas - Campanula (1934), Herringbone (1943), Sun Stream (1945)
- 2,000 Guineas - Garden Path (1944)
- Derby - Felstead (1928), Blenheim (1930), Watling Street (1942)
- Oaks - Rockfel (1938), Commotion (1941), Sun Stream (1945), Steady Aim (1946)
- St. Leger - Sandwich (1931), Herringbone (1943)
His nickname was "The Head Waiter",[1] a punning reference to his being the best among his contemporaries at waiting until the very last moment to produce his challenge, overtaking the field in the very last strides to the line.
On his retirement as a jockey in 1947, Wragg became a successful trainer, saddling 5 Classic Race winners as follows:
- 1,000 Guineas - Abermaid (1962), Full Dress II (1969)
- 2,000 Guineas - Darius (1954)
- Derby - Psidium (1961)
- St. Leger - Intermezzo (1969)
In Cockney rhyming slang Harry Wragg means "fag" (cigarette), but this has fallen into disuse since Mr Wragg's retirement from the public eye and his death. The Kinks sang a song entitled Harry Rag.
His son Geoff Wragg is also a successful horse race trainer.
[edit] References
- ^ THE HEAD WAITER. A biography of Harry Wragg. by Michael Seth-Smith 1984. H/B. 1st.Ed. 226pp. ISBN:071812443X
