AP McCoy - the jockey of a lifetime
Spurs fans look away now, but Arsene Wenger was on the money.
For all the justifiable hyperbole over the last few months, perhaps the Arsenal manager summed up the Tony McCoy odyssey better than anyone when he said “longevity is a sign of top quality”.
That timeless ability to never stop trying, to keep going through hell and high water. That was McCoy’s greatest characteristic.
McCoy was a brilliant rider, capable of moments of genuine class at precisely the right time in precisely the right races.
But it will not be his finesse nor his prodigy that will be remembered most potently by those recounting McCoy memories in years to come.
It will be his refusal to lose. His near-sadistic love of salvaging lost causes. His strict moral code that every penny punters had invested should always represent value.
That may be a rather trite argument, and one which possibly devalues McCoy’s actual greatness in the saddle, but it is, in reality, the highest form of praise.
What makes sporting icons so enduring is not that God-given sprinkling of gold-dust few on this planet are lucky enough to have. Raw quality is never enough.
Without putting in the painful miles, without the blood, sweat and tears that are the unwanted side effects of toil, potential can never transcend a sport.
Tony McCoy did not rise above horseracing because of genius. He did so the hard way. The only way.
After all, the 40-year-old from County Antrim has broken as many bones in his body as records, but it is his legacy to racing which will echo throughout the ages.
’Legacy’ can be an awful word, used so incorrectly so often, but it is an utterly appropriate truism when it comes to assessing McCoy’s impact upon his sport.
Young jump jockeys gazing towards stardom can forever take inspiration from a man who knew how to do it right.
And it is not just his art of horsemanship they should try to copy. They should attempt to imitate McCoy’s way of winning. Neither with hubris nor ego, but with class, grace and, above all else, respect for thoroughbreds.
In an age when seemingly anyone can become a victim of hype, nobility in triumph and despair are his gifts that will keep on giving.
Indeed, McCoy’s need to achieve the unachievable has become so ingrained within his personality that some voices in racing have suggested he should be recognised as the greatest sports person of a generation.
Self-deprecating to a fault, it is hard to imagine the man himself going along with such a premise.
Horses and jockeys are a partnership. If one or the other falters, the foundations crumble. Without the right range of artillery, McCoy would not have been able to do what he has done.
Tiger Woods in the glory years was never dependent upon the whimsy of his golf clubs, for instance, while you never saw Roger Federer salute the majesty of his tennis racket during his pomp.
Yes, McCoy will always be in thrall to the good horses, but – and this is perhaps the key point – he has also ridden many bad ones.
Whereas Ruby Walsh is given the keys to a Rolls Royce at virtually every meeting in Ireland and the UK, there was McCoy, plugging away at Hexham on the equine equivalent of a used Vauxhall Omega with high mileage.
And that’s what makes Wenger’s remarks about Arsenal fan McCoy so prescient.
To become a champion in any field requires unflinching desire. To do so 20 times on the spin requires the patience of Jobe and the perseverance of a termite.
For all the records, the titles and the trophies, winning races was the only form of vice for the teetotal McCoy.
He went through it all for his own peace of mind, safe in the knowledge the good days were never far away, but wise enough to appreciate that the shadows could lengthen at any given moment.
In its purest sense, his career might be regarded as one long pursuit of self-preservation.
But, somewhat ironically, the joy he has given to millions, and the positivity he has instilled into an embattled sport like horseracing, is immeasurable.
Some say he retired too early, but that is not true.
Like all great entertainers, he left the stage leaving the audience wanting more.
Make no mistake, Tony McCoy went the distance.
