Born to be in horse racing
The fascination of the horse went a long way in encouraging second-generation trainer Howard Jaghai to follow in his father’s (Harry) footsteps to become a trainer of racehorses.
As his interest deepened in his chosen profession of becoming a successful trainer of the thoroughbred, his ambition grew to the point of wanting to scale the top of his chosen field by unsaddling a Derby winner one day.
“Being champion trainer is not enough. With the right connections, that is possible. There is a greater thrill of victory in saddling a Derby winner for me”, young Jaghai confessed.
At present Jaghai, who is the product of a rich ancestry in the field of thoroughbred breeding and training – being the son of successful trainer Harry Jaghai (especially in the 1990s) and nephew of multiple breeders’ champion and operator of the Bombay Stud Farms, Henry Jaghai — utilises his time between training his small string of horses and schooling the young ones at the Bombay Stud.
This is Jaghai’s 15th year as a licensed trainer, and in this period he has saddled 79 winners.
Young Jaghai explains his step-by-step introduction to the profession.
“I was born into racing, and from a tender age I developed a love for horses. I was fascinated to be around them and came to the track as a child, and it was like paradise to me.
“It was fascinating to see my father at work. What inspired me though as I grew older was the success of my father and my uncle.
“My father was always a top-flight trainer, especially in the 1990s, and it was then I really got into racing. It was during that time in the late 1990s that I became involved in racing officially as an assistant trainer.
“My uncle Henry was also a prominent breeder and champion breeder on numerous occasions, and those factors got me inspired to follow a family tradition.
“When I was in fifth form at Wolmer’s High, I began to give serious consideration to becoming deeply involved in the training aspect of horses, and after graduation I obtained my assistant trainer’s licence.
“As an assistant trainer, I started off with six horses – four young horses and two racers – all owned by my uncle. These horses I had under my care before I obtained my trainer’s licence in 2001. I graduated with top honours (in the practical areas of saddling and bandaging) and was off to a flying start after obtaining my licence.
“I saddled Sir Thakur Baba on Superstakes Day 2001 as my first winner from my third start.
“Then on the following Saturday, I won my second race, this time with Lady Balari. The best winning horse that I have trained to this point is Palace Gold, with whom I have won 11 races.
“I also have the distinction of beating Saint Cecelia in a race.Blast Them Away had beaten Palace Gold and Palace Gold had beaten Saint Cecelia into third place, which makes Palace Gold the best horse that I have trained.”
Horse racing, Jaghai admitted, is no bed of roses. It is very challenging at times but, according to him: “That is how life is. If you want to be successful at anything, you have to mix the thick with the thin and persevere.”