Oxford Stadium is mourning the death of legendary trainer Henry Kibble, who died last week aged 88.
The father of Oxford handler Terry, Henry was a true great while at Cowley landing the trainers’ championship a record ten times, a feat he shared with Bill Higgins.
One of his last visits to the stadium was last December to celebrate his 87th birthday, after being involved in a motor accident earlier in the day.
Henry first appeared at Oxford in 1953 under a ‘C’ licence, but soon established his career taking up a full licence and moving into the kennels at the stadium.
His best spell was between 1959-1970 where he became one of the most prominent figures in the sport.
He steered By Chance to Oxfordshire Stakes glory in a track-record time in 1975, and sent out six Produce Stakes finalists in Knightwick Mac, Knightwick Story, Lindsay Sue, Stay Late, No Poaching and By Chance.
However, he will probably best remembered for the great Drum Major, owned by the late John Grandi, who was a winner of more 50 races at Sandy Lane.
He left Oxford for sister track Bristol at the company’s reguest in 1971.
Although officially retiring in 1988, continued to assist his son at the kennels after the Kibble family returned to Oxford in 2006.
In one of many tributes, Oxford’s Racing manager Gary Baiden said: “Henry’s career ranked among the best and his passing will be a sad loss to all in greyhound racing.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here