Career
Reid served as an apprentice in his native Ireland to Leslie Crawford, before moving to England and joining Verley Bewicke. His first Classic victory came in the 1982 1,000 Guineas aboard On The House. His biggest victory came on Doctor Devious in the 1992 Epsom Derby for the trainer Peter Chapple-Hyam.
John was also successful in the 1,000 Guineas in 1994 on Las Meninas and in the Saint Leger Stakes in 1998 on Nedawi.
Reid considered retirement in 1999 after a heavy fall at Kempton Park, but kept going for another two years until announcing his retirement in September 2001, and becoming president of the Jockeys Association. John Reid was made an Administration Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1997 for his services to horse racing.
In total, John Reid rode 1,937 winners in the United Kingdom, and gained 48 international Group 1 race victories during his career. In 1987, on the British Broadcasting Corporation"s television sports quiz A Question of Sport, Emlyn Hughes mistook a heavily-muddied picture of Princess Anne on a horse to be Reid.
