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Colehill Co Longford Ireland
Paul Flynn is a dual-purpose trainer based in Colehill, County Longford, about half-an-hour away from Kilbeggan racecourse. The ex-jockey took out his license in 2006 after injury ended his riding career prematurely.
Flynn had a very successful career as a jockey in Britain before becoming a trainer, riding more than 200 winners, many of those for Phillip Hobbs. One of the highlights was victory aboard What’s Up Boys in the 2001 Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Newbury.
His exploits in the saddle also included a Cheltenham Festival winner, as the same horse won the Coral Cup in 2000. Obliging at odds of 33/1, the pair made rapid headway approaching the last and managed to catch the runner-up in the dying strides.
Flynn’s daughter Ciara is an amateur rider and she won a race for her father at Dundalk aboard Little Queenie.
The definition of a dual-purpose trainer, his 195 winners in Ireland are split almost down the middle, with 96 coming over jumps while he is just one away from hitting the 100-mark on the Flat.
Dundalk has provided him with 43 winners thus far, almost half of his 99 Irish Flat winners. Flynn has yet to win a Listed or Group race on the Flat but it will surely happen sooner or later.
Flynn has had 11 winners over jumps in Britain and boasts a very healthy strike-rate of 33 percent at Ayr, Fontwell, Sedgefield and Uttoxeter. He also has five Flat winners in Britain, with two of those coming at Hamilton and the other three at Wolverhampton.
Flynn won the Galway Hurdle as a trainer back in 2011 with Moon Dice, with Tom Doyle doing the steering. They raced prominently throughout and produced their challenge jumping the last, before going on to score by just shy of five lengths.
That was Moon Dice’s second start in handicap company and he had won on handicap debut at Limerick before that.
Archie Boy became Flynn’s first graded winner in the 2009 Like-A-Butterfly Novice Chase. Davy Russell was on board that day and the pair beat a couple of useful horses on their way to victory.
Flynn’s gelding disputed the lead approaching the second-last and stayed on well to kick three lengths clear of the second, winning the Grade 3 contest with plenty in hand.
The trainer didn’t have to wait too long for his next graded winner, as the Paul Carberry-ridden Save My Blushes won the Grade 3 Kilbegnet European Breeders Fund Novice Chase the following year.
He did well to do so, dropping to the rear of the field earlier on in the race, but battled back strongly to score by half-a-length.
Not just a jumps trainer, one of Flynn’s biggest successes to date on the Flat came in the valuable Arthur’s Day Handicap at the Galway Festival.
Drunken Sailor was well backed on the day and went off the 9/2 joint-favourite, just managing to hold off runner-up Rajik. Subsequent Epsom Derby-winning jockey Padraig Beggy was on board and his 3lb claim made all the difference.
