1967 Grand National began running in the wrong direction, back the way they had come. The undistinguished Foinavon, whose owner had such little faith in him that he had travelled to Worcester on race day instead, had been lagging so far behind that his jockey, John Buckingham, had sufficient time to steer his mount wide of the mêlée and find a small gap in the fence to jump cleanly on the outside. Being on the only horse over the 23rd at the first attempt, Buckingham found himself with a surprise lead of 30 lengths. Although 17 jockeys remounted to give chase and some
The Chair (Aintree Racecourse) hours later, never having regained consciousness. Former winning jockey George Ede, who rode under the name Mr. Edwards, also lost his life in a fall at the fence in 1872, albeit not in a Grand National. In the 1964 Grand National, rider Paddy Farrell fractured his spine in a fall at The Chair. His plight highlighted the lack of support for jockeys who are badly injured in racing, leading to the creation of the injured jockeys' fund. The fence has caught out numerous Grand National winners over the years, including Russian Hero (1951), Ayala (1964), Rubstic (1980) and Silver Birch