Platinum Jubilee: Jockeys to honour Queen on Derby Day at Epsom

James Doyle, Franny Norton, David Probert, Hayley Turner and John Reid will be among jockeys greeting the Queen

Forty retired and current jockeys who have ridden for the Queen will form a guard of honour at Epsom on Derby Day to mark the monarch's Platinum Jubilee.

The welcoming party on 4 June, including Willie Carson and Frankie Dettori, will be dressed in purple, gold and red racing silks.

Racecourse owners the Jockey Club say the Queen's Stand will be permanently renamed the Queen Elizabeth II Stand.

Reach For The Moon, owned by the Queen, is third favourite for the Derby.

Educator and General Idea are also entered as Her Majesty seeks a first win in the Classic.

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Carson, a four-time Derby winner, rode Dunfermline to win the Oaks at Epsom for the Queen in 1977, her Silver Jubilee year.

"It makes you feel important when you put those colours on. The Queen is the most famous woman in the whole wide world, so you're privileged," said Carson, 79.

"She's the patron of racing. Without her we would be a little bit lost, because her patronage is a very valuable thing."

Derby Day will form part of the official celebrations to mark the Queen's 70 years on the throne.

"As well as her amazing association with horse racing and horses, the Queen also has a special relationship with the Derby," said Jockey Club regional director Phil White.

"She has only missed four since her Coronation and two of those were in the last two years during the pandemic.

"We have more than 35,000 tickets in our paid enclosures on the racecourse side, but then there will be tens of thousands more on The Hill, and it's free to walk on there, so we're expecting a big crowd."