Dick Hern
Dick Hern, born William Richard Hern on 20 January 1921 in Holford, Somerset, was a famed English horse trainer. He trained many top horses and won 16 British Classic Races between 1962 and 1995. He was crowned Champion Trainer four times (1962, 1972, 1980, 1983) and was later honored in the British Flat Racing Hall of Fame in 2025.
Before becoming a trainer, Hern served as an Army major and worked as a riding instructor, even helping the Olympic gold-medal-winning team in 1952.
His first training job was as private trainer for Major Lionel Holliday in 1958 at La Grange Stables in Newmarket. At the end of 1962 he moved to West Ilsley to take over from Jack Colling.
Hern became best known for winning the St. Leger Stakes six times. He trained three Epsom Derby winners: Troy (1979), Henbit (1980), and Nashwan (1989). Nashwan also won the 2,000 Guineas and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. He also trained Brigadier Gerard, who was beaten only once in 18 races.
Other notable horses include Sun Princess, Dayjur, Hethersett, Bustino, Provoke, and Dunfermline.
In December 1984, Hern suffered a hunting accident and used a wheelchair afterwards. In 1988 he was controversially dismissed from training the Queen’s horses at West Ilsley while recovering from heart surgery. A compromise followed: he shared the stable with the new trainer for a year before moving to Kingwood House Stables in Lambourn.
Dick Hern died on 22 May 2002 in Oxford, at age 81.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 08:51 (CET).