In a rare display of dominance, Andy Win, trained by Shane Jackson, has secured a commanding 12-length victory in the 2026 Grand National Hurdle at Ballarat, completing the historic Grand National Hurdle and Grand National Steeplechase double for only the third time in nearly a century.
The modern jumping landscape differs considerably from 1930 when Mosstrooper achieved the same double at Flemington, yet the emotional resonance of such an achievement remains profound for all involved. This sentiment was amplified for Andy Win ($3.30 favourite), who triumphed despite facing a severe injury scare in the days leading up to the race.
“I’m not an emotional sort of person but it has been a rollercoaster with this horse and it has been a stressful week,” Jackson said.
“I can tell people now that this horse schooled here on Monday when it was waterlogged and on Tuesday evening he’d come out with a bloody foot abscess.
“I thought, ‘I can’t tell anybody about this and I can’t tell jockey, for sure’.
“Thankfully I have a great farrier in Ballarat and my brilliant vets in Warrnambool. I’m lost for words. This is peak.”
The current scheduling, with the Grand National Hurdle (4200m) at Sandown on August 2 and this 4600-metre race run a fortnight apart, positions Andy Win’s achievement alongside Tallyho Twinkletoe’s 2019 success in completing the same double. This stands in contrast to the period before 2008 when the races were conducted only a week apart.
It is worth noting that Andy Win’s introduction to jumps racing was as recent as May last year.
Jockey Tom Ryan celebrated his second Grand National Steeplechase triumph, having first won the event in 2011.
“I wouldn’t want to know, to be honest,” Ryan said when told of the horse’s injury prior.
“He was a bit flat over the third last fence but when I got stuck into him, he came alive.”
Earlier on the card, Ryan guided the short-priced favourite, The Cunning Fox ($1.60), to a hard-fought win in the JJ Houlihan Hurdle. The second favourite had built up a lead exceeding 20 lengths approaching the final lap of the 3250m contest involving just three runners.
“Horses like Andy Win and The Cunning Fox, they’re just warriors,” Ryan added.
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