1981 Grand National In second place was the 8/1 favourite, Spartan Missile, ridden by 54-year-old amateur jockey and grandfather John Thorne. The story of Bob Champion and Aldaniti was made into a film "Champions", with John Hurt portraying Champion. The film is based on Champion's book "Champion's Story", which he co-wrote with close friend and racing journalist and broadcaster Jonathan Powell. 1981 Grand National The 1981 Grand National was the 135th renewal of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 4 April 1981. It is remembered for the winning horse Aldaniti, who had recovered from
Grand National Grand National in over 140 countries. It has also been broadcast on radio since 1927; BBC Radio held exclusive rights until 2013, however, Talksport also now holds radio commentary rights. The most recent running of the race, in 2018, was won by Tiger Roll ridden by jockey Davy Russell for trainer Gordon Elliott. The next Grand National meeting will start on 4 April 2019 and finish on 6 April 2019. As of 2017, the race and accompanying festival are sponsored by Randox Health. The Grand National was founded by William Lynn, a syndicate head and proprietor of the Waterloo Hotel,