He wanted
to establish his own steeplechase race as an alternative to Tom Coleman's Great St Albans Steeplechase. To
achieve this ambition, Lynn had to fight the snobbery of the Jockey Club, which disapproved of the new
cross-country racing style. He won, and punters now place millions of
Grand National bets
every year
The Grand Liverpool Steeplechase, the race that later became known as the Grand National, first took place
on 26 February 1839.
But even though the 1839 race is in the record books as the first official Grand National, there has been
much debate over the first "true" running of the great race.
Some racing historians argue that the races run in 1836, 1837 and 1838 should be counted as the first three
true Grand Nationals. These races were originally thought to have taken place at the nearby Maghull
Racecourse, rather than Aintree, and aren't counted simply because of their different venue.
Recently however, evidence has emerged that these early races were actually run on the current Aintree
course and it has been the source of much debate among fans of
horse race betting.
The winning horse was The Duke in both 1836 and 1837, whilst Sir William won in 1838. And in 1836, The Duke
was ridden by none other than Captain Becher whose name was to live on in legend thanks to his spectacular
fall at the sixth fence that was to bear his name.
In fact, it was Captain Becher's victory in the Great St Albans race that led him to suggest the idea of a
great cross country chase in the north of England to his friend and racecourse owner – the aforementioned
William Lynn.
Sadly, the Captain was never to win an "official" - 1839 and onwards - Grand National, but his name lives on
thanks to the famous fence, and for many Grand National enthusiasts, he won the first true running of the
race.
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