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The 1989 Grand National (officially known as the Seagram Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 143rd renewal of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 8 April 1989. The race was won in a time of 10 minutes 6.9 seconds and by a distance of 7 lengths by Irish 12-year-old Little Polveir, ridden by jockey Jimmy Frost. West Tip was second and The Thinker finished third. Fourteen of the 40 runners completed the course.〔 The winner had been sold by a four-way partnership six weeks before the race to Edward Harvey. It was Little Polveir's fourth attempt at the Grand National; he was sent off at odds of 28/1.〔 Jockey Frost's unborn son, Hadden, attempted to emulate his father's victory 22 years later by riding Calgary Bay in the 2011 Grand National; he fell at the fourth fence. There were two equine fatalities during the race, both at Becher's Brook. The deaths came two years after the dramatic fatal fall of the popular grey Dark Ivy at Becher's in 1987. Following an outcry, Aintree took significant measures to reduce the severity of the fence. The main race was seen by a record Grand National crowd at Aintree, with 74,189 people in attendance, over 8,500 more than the previous year, and it would not be until the Monday race of 1997 that a larger crowd would attend the main race day.〔(【引用サイトリンク】date=2 February 2013 )〕 ==Leading contenders== Dixton House was backed down from 33/1 to 7/1 favourite after he won the National Hunt Handicap Chase at Cheltenham a few weeks before Aintree, helping his rider, Tom Morgan, to the leading rider's trophy at the festival in the process. Morgan, having his fifth ride in the Grand National, took the favourite to the front going to Becher's Brook for the first time, only to crumple on landing and exit the contest. Dixton House only ever returned to a racecourse once more, in January 1990, when he pulled up lame and was subsequently retired while Morgan also never raced in the National again. Durham Edition had been prepared by trainer Arthur Stephenson specifically with the Grand National in mind after his second-place finish the previous year. A proven ability to be at the business end of the National ensured plenty of public support to be sent off at 15/2. In addition, he was to be partnered, as last year, by Chris Grant, jointly the most experienced rider in the race, weighing out for his ninth National. The pair ran what was considered at the time by many in racing to be a textbook Grand National: hunting around the first circuit in mid-division before gradually moving through the field on the second; always in touch, they moved into the rear of a leading group of seven at the Canal Turn on the second circuit, tracking the group until moving up onto the tail of the leader over the final two fences. When asked to quicken however, Grant found his mount to be a spent force and instead of closing on the leader he was swallowed up by other stronger finishers, coming home in fifth place.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=1989 Grand National Results )〕 The pair would return in 1990 for a third attempt at the race together. Bonanza Boy had won the Welsh Grand National at Chepstow four months earlier before going on to win the Racing Post Chase in even more impressive style. These two victorious performances on ground getting close to the conditions at Aintree in the week leading up to the National led the public to discount a modest performance in the recent Cheltenham Gold Cup and back him to win at 10/1. His regular rider, Peter Scudamore who, like Grant was taking his tenth ride in the race was hoping to finally win the race for the first time. Scudamore guided his mount through the first circuit to sit among the leading half a dozen contestants as they started out for the second circuit but soon after jumping the Canal Turn it could be seen that Bonanza Boy was being given reminders. They turned for home a close up fourth but as they came to the second last flight it became clear that he was unlikely to win, dropping out of contention by the final flight before making the best of their way home in eighth place. Bonanza Boy returned to Chepstow eight months later to retain his Welsh National crown before embarking on another attempt at Aintree. The Thinker was bidding to be only the third Cheltenham Gold Cup winner in history to complete the Grand National double, having been crowned the Champion Chaser in 1987. The former Gold Cup winner came to Aintree after finishing third in the Welsh National, behind Bonanza Boy but then fell when trying to score a second Gold Cup the month before the National. That race had been won by Simon Sherwood aboard Desert Orchid but with the Cheltenham Champion not sent to Aintree, Sherwood took the ride on The Thinker in a bid to complete the double in the same season. Despite being given the top weight of 11 stone 10 lbs, The Thinker was backed down to 10/1 at the off but for most of the race it looked as if they would fair no better than to complete the course. At the Canal Turn on the second circuit they were a good ten lengths adrift of the leading group of eight and seemed only to be making modest headway as they crossed the Anchor Bridge crossing. On the run to the second last flight however the top weight made relentless progress to not only catch the group ahead of him but start to work though them, taking the penultimate flight in fourth place, albeit crashing through the fence and nearly falling. Sherwood was able to gather The Thinker up and took the final flight in third place, quickly reeling in Durham Edition to move into second place but at the elbow their challenge began to falter and they passed the post a length down on the runner up in third. The Thinker was yet again burdened with top weight for the 1990 Grand National only to be withdrawn on the eve of the race. Worse was to follow in 1991, when the horse was backed down to 16/1, despite being thirteen years old. In company with Chris Grant he was cantering at Aintree on the Thursday before the race when he shattered a leg and had to be destroyed.〔Daily Express Page 36, Friday 6 April 1991〕 West Tip was by now a people's champion after following up his 1986 Grand National victory with fourth placed finishes in 1987 and 1988 after falling at his first attempt in 1985. As in all his previous Nationals he was partnered by Richard Dunwoody. West Tip went into the front rank right from the off and led the field over the Chair at the half way stage. They were headed by the eventual winner on the way down to Becher's Brook for the second time and looked to a beaten horse, dropping back to fifth as the leaders turned for the second last fence. Dunwoody was able to find a second wind from the former National winner jumping the final fence as they moved into second place before being outpaced by the eventual winner. Others widely supported on the day were 1986 Welsh National winner, Stearsby at 14/1, Lastofthebrownies and Perris Valley at 16/1, the latter of which provided Brendan Sheridan with the best fancied ride of the sixteen jockeys making their debut in the race. Former National winner Neale Doughty took the mount on Gala's Image which started at 18/1 with the 1988 Lord Mildmay of Fleet winner, Smart Tar. Last year's third placed Monanore was considered an excellent each-way chance at 20/1 while fifth placed Attitude Adjuster started at the longer odds of 25/1 with Bob Tisdall and Gainsay, the latter of which being owned by Errol Brown, better known as the lead singer of the popular 1970s and 1980s pop group, Hot Chocolate. Little Polveir was allowed to go off at the modest odds of 28/1, despite having won the Scottish Grand National in 1987. This would be the horse's fourth, and surely final attempt at a race he had completed in tenth place in 1987 before falling in each of the last two Nationals, the latter of which had seen him leading when unseatng his rider five fences from the finish. Jimmy Frost took the mount as his debut ride in the race with many newspaper tipsters suggesting that the pair would part company during the race. Frost kept Little Polveir among the leading dozen on the first circuit, moving up to take the lead as the field jumped the water at the end of the first circuit. They were never again headed and after the fall of Smart Tar at the twenty-first fence, maintained a lead of at least three lengths for the rest of the race. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「1989 Grand National」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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