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| Jarvis..UNDERSTATED AND HUMBLE |
The understated and humble Jarvis had been battling ill health in recent years, undergoing heart surgery in 2009 and also fought against prostate cancer and announced he was handing in his training licence in February this year.
Aside from Carroll House, Jarvis also enjoyed top class success with Rakti, who won five Group One races including the Champion Stakes, Holding Court winner of the Prix du Jockey Club in 2000 and fillies Ameerat and Eswarah brought him his only two English Classics, the 1000 Guineas in 2001 and the Oaks in 2005.
Irish riding great Michael Kinane said that it was in large part thanks to Jarvis’s support in giving him the ride on Carroll House that set him up for his stallar career.
“It’s very sad news. He was a lovely man to ride for and a lovely man to know,” said Kinane, who retired in 2009 after riding the great Sea the Stars to victory in the Arc.
“He was a thorough gentleman. It’s so unfortunate that he didn’t get to enjoy his retirement and such is life.
“Carroll House got me off to a great start. I’d have to say he got me on to the international stage in winning an Irish Champion Stakes and then going on to win an Arc.
“He was my big breakthrough horse so he’ll always have a high place in my book.”
While Kinane rode Carroll House for him, most of the other big wins came with Philip Robinson on board.
“It’s really heartbreaking,” said Robinson. “I was trying to get to see him at the weekend but I was informed by his wife Gay that he was in a very bad way and not able to talk. It’s very sad. “It’s devastating news.
“We had a run of a few exceptional years. We won the French Derby with Holding Court, the Italian Derby with Morshdi and then Rakti came along. We had a purple run and it was lovely to be there with him.