Grand National the run-in and, two strides from the finishing post, he pipped the tiring Crisp to win by three-quarters of a length in what is arguably the most memorable Grand National of all time. Red Rum finished in 9 minutes 1.9 seconds, taking 18.3 seconds off the previous record for the National which had been set in 1935 by Reynoldstown. His record was to stand for the next seventeen years. Two years before the 1981 Grand National, jockey Bob Champion had been diagnosed with testicular cancer and given only months to live by doctors. But by 1981 he had recovered and
1948 Grand National Cromwell third and Happy Home fourth. Forty-three horses ran and all returned safely to the stables. 1948 Grand National The 1948 Grand National was the 102nd renewal of the world-famous Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 20 March 1948. The race was won by the mare Sheila's Cottage at odds of 66/1. The winning jockey was Arthur Thompson and Neville Crump trained the winner. The pairing of Thompson and Crump won the Grand National again in 1952. Sheila's Cottage became the first mare to win the National for 46 years, and only