| 1989 Grand National | |
|---|---|
| Grand National | |
| Location | Aintree Racecourse |
| Date | 8 April 1989 |
| Winning horse | Little Polveir |
| SP | 28/1 |
| Jockey | Jimmy Frost |
| Trainer | G B Balding |
| Owner | Edward Harvey |
| Conditions | Heavy[1] |
The 1989 Grand National (known as the Seagram Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 143rd renewal of the world-famous Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree near Liverpool, England, on 8 April 1989.
The race was won in a time of ten minutes and 6.9 seconds and by a distance of seven lengths by Irish 12-year-old Little Polveir. West Tip was second and The Thinker third. 14 of the 40 runners completed the course.[1]
The winner had been sold by a four-way partnership six weeks before the race to Edward Harvey.[2] It was Little Polveir's fourth attempt in the Grand National; he was sent off at odds of 28/1 and was ridden by jockey Jimmy Frost.[3][3] Frost's unborn son, Hadden, would attempt to emulate his father's victory 22 years later, riding Calgary Bay in the 2011 Grand National.[4]
There were two equine fatalities at Becher's Brook.[1] The deaths of Seeandem and Brown Trix came two years after the dramatic fatal fall of the popular Dark Ivy at Becher's, and Aintree took measures to reduce the severity of the fence after the 1989 race.
The main race was seen by a record Grand National crowd at Aintree, with 74,189 people in attendance, over 8,500 more than the previous year, and it would not be until the Monday race of 1997 that a larger crowd would attend the main race day.[5]
| Position | Name | Jockey | Age | Weight | SP | Distance |
| 1st | Little Polveir | Jimmy Frost | 12 | 10-03 | 28/1 | Won by 7 lengths |
| 2nd | West Tip | Richard Dunwoody | 12 | 10-11 | 12/1 | ½ length |
| 3rd | The Thinker | Simon Sherwood | 11 | 11-10 | 10/1 | 6 lengths |
| 4th | Lastofthebrownies | Tommy Carmody | 9 | 10-00 | 16/1 | 5 lengths |
| 5th | Durham Edition | Chris Grant | 11 | 10-11 | 15/2 | 8 lengths |
| 6th | Monanore | Graham McCourt | 12 | 10-06 | 20/1 | 2½ lengths |
| 7th | Gala's Image | Neale Doughty | 9 | 10-03 | 18/1 | 1½ lengths |
| 8th | Bonanza Boy | Peter Scudamore | 8 | 11-01 | 10/1 | 4 lengths |
| 9th | Team Challenge | Michael Bowlby | 7 | 10-00 | 30/1 | 15 lengths |
| 10th | Newnham | Mr. S Andrews | 12 | 10-05 | 50/1 | 25 lengths |
| 11th | The Thirsty Farmer | L Kelp | 10 | 10-02 | 100/1 | |
| 12th | Attitude Adjust | N Madden | 9 | 10-06 | 25/1 | |
| 13th | Sidbury Hill | Kevin Mooney | 13 | 10-00 | 100/1 | |
| 14th | Mr. Baker | M Moran | 11 | 10-00 | 100/1 |
| Fence | Name | Jockey | Age | Weight | SP | Fate |
| 1st | Cerimau | P Hobbs | 11 | 10-00 | 80/1 | Fell |
| 2nd | Cranlome | K F O'Brien | 11 | 10-00 | 66/1 | Fell |
| 2nd | Bob Tisdall | J White | 10 | 10-07 | 25/1 | Refused |
| 6th (Becher's Brook) | Hettinger | R Goldstein | 9 | 10-00 | 300/1 | Fell |
| 6th (Becher's Brook) | Sir Jest | M Hammond | 11 | 10-01 | 40/1 | Brought down |
| 6th (Becher's Brook) | Dixton House | T Morgan | 10 | 10-03 | 7/1 F | Fell |
| 6th (Becher's Brook) | Sergeant Sprite | T J Taaffe | 9 | 10-02 | 50/1 | Fell |
| 6th (Becher's Brook) | Brown Trix | Mr. D Pitcher | 11 | 10-05 | 300/1 | Fell (fatally) |
| 6th (Becher's Brook) | Seeandem | L Cusack | 9 | 10-00 | 100/1 | Fell (fatally) |
| 11th | Friendly Henry | H Davies | 9 | 10-04 | 66/1 | Fell |
| 11th | Perris Valley | B Sheridan | 8 | 10-00 | 16/1 | Fell |
| 11th | Stearsby | B Powell | 10 | 10-09 | 14/1 | Refused |
| 15th (The Chair) | Smartside | Mr. A Hambly | 14 | 10-05 | 300/1 | Refused |
| 16th (Water Jump) | Mr. Chris | B Storey | 10 | 10-00 | 200/1 | Fell |
| 18th | Beamwam | Mr. D Naylor-Leyland | 11 | 10-06 | 100/1 | Pulled up |
| 19th | Gainsay | M Pitman | 10 | 10-06 | 25/1 | Fell |
| 19th | Queensway Boy | A Webb | 10 | 10-00 | 50/1 | Refused |
| 20th | Smart Tar | C Llewellyn | 8 | 10-03 | 18/1 | Fell |
| 21st | Mearlin | S McNeill | 10 | 10-00 | 300/1 | Pulled up |
| 21st | Numerate | T Davis | 10 | 10-00 | 100/1 | Pulled up |
| 23rd (Foinavon's) | Kersil | A Orkney | 12 | 10-00 | 300/1 | Pulled up |
| 25th (Valentine's) | Polar Nomad | A Merrigan | 8 | 10-00 | 80/1 | Pulled up |
| 25th (Valentine's) | Bartres | G Bradley | 10 | 10-03 | 33/1 | Pulled up |
| 27th | Rausal | D Tegg | 10 | 10-00 | 50/1 | Refused |
| 27th | Memberson | 11 | 10-02 | 33/1 | Pulled up | |
| 27th | Mithras | R Stronge | 11 | 10-01 | 66/1 | Pulled up |
http://www.grand-national-world.co.uk/gnw/the_race/past_winners_index.html