By Dan Walsh
There was a fairytale ending in the final race at the Cheltenham Festival today (Thursday) when young Cleariestown jockey Barry Stone, on his first ride at the festival, won the Kim Muir Amateur Jockey’s Handicap Chase on Daily Present trained at Toberona Stables, Enniscorthy, by Paul Nolan.
J.P. McManus’ Johnnywho was still on the bridle under Derek O’Connor when leading at the second-last, but he was collared on the run-in by Daily Present, who scored by a neck over the 9-2 favourite.
While it was the fourth time Nolan had entered the winner’s enclosure at the famous racing festival, this was Stone’s first experience of riding in Britain.
Barry is one of the leading point-to-point riders with 58 career winners to his credit, 19 of them in the 2024-’25 season. Last Sunday Barry rode a double at his local track – Lingstown, Tomhaggard – including a super success on Vital Island, who was winning over the ‘famous banks course’ for the sixth time!
The rider has worked for the likes of Noel Meade, Joseph O’Brien and Jim Bolger, and he ensured family bragging rights over brother Conor Stone-Walsh, who had found himself on the wrong end of a McManus hotpot when second on Thecompanysergeant behind Jagwar in an earlier race.
Afterwards, Barry Stone said; “It’s magical stuff. I’ve been dreaming of it for years growing up and nothing can top this. This is what dreams are made of. You’re following the best lads around so you can’t do too much wrong when you’re following them boys.
“My uncle (Benny Walsh) was a jockey in Ireland and he’s a trainer now, training point-to-pointers. My brother’s (Conor Stone-Walsh) a professional jockey. We’ve grown up with horses all our lives and places like this is where you’d want to be. He winged the last and when I landed, I knew I just had to keep him up to his work.”
Conor Stone-Walsh from Cleariestown was second in a race on the opening day of the four-day festival and he recored another runner-up spot on Thecompanysergeant for Gavin Cromwell in the handicap chase today.
And yesterday’s winning jockey Sean O’Keeffe from Taghmon was also in the placings today. He was aboard O’moore Park for Wilie Mullins and finished third in the Grade 2 Novice Chase.
Tomorrow (Friday) is the final day of this year’s festival and the feature race is the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup at 4pm with Galopin Des Champs odds-on favourite to gain third success in the big race, however, look out for Wexford jockey JJ Slevin from Caim riding the second favourite and King George VI winner, Banbridge, for his cousin, Joseph O’Brien.
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