Receptions will be held by Waterford Council to honour the achievements of both Dungarvan trainer John Kiely and Ardmore jockey John Gleeson in the coming weeks, it has been confirmed.
Kiely (85) and Gleeson (18) struck a winning combination at the recent Cheltenham Festival, winning the Grade 1 Champion Bumper with 7/2 shot A Dream To Share, a horse bred by the Gleeson family, who was recently purchased by legendary owner JP McManus.
John Kiely is set to be honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award from Waterford City & County Council, while a Mayoral Reception will be held for young John Gleeson to acknowledge his remarkable achievements to date aboard A Dream To Share.
It was Gleeson’s first ride at the famed festival, capturing his maiden Grade One success with a superbly timed challenge aboard the son of Muhaarar to see off the Willie Mullins-trained Fact To File by a length and a quarter. Remarkably, despite a career of widespread successes that have included victories all over the world, it was Kiely’s first ever winner at the famed Prestbury Park festival.
A Dream To Share is one of just a handful of horses trained by the legendary Lisfennel handler, and at the recent meeting of the Dungarvan / Lismore District Council, Cllr. Damien Geoghegan (Fine Gael) proposed a vote of congratulations to all involved in a tremendous local success story.
“It was a magnificent success at Cheltenham recently”, said Cllr. Geoghegan.
“It’s the Waterford sports story of the year and indeed one of racing’s stories of the year. John Kiely and his family have been training in Dungarvan for many years and are synonymous with horses and for him to have the winner of the Cheltenham Bumper - ridden by a Leaving Cert student here in Dungarvan, Ardmore’s John Gleeson, having his first ride at Cheltenham - winning in such style, it gave everyone a fantastic lift. I would ask that we would pass on our congratulations to all winning connections.”
Echoing the sentiments of Cllr. Geoghegan, Cllr. Tom Cronin (Fianna Fáil), a member of the local authority’s Corporate Policy Group, confirmed that it has been agreed that a formal reception will be held to honour both Kiely and Gleeson’s achievements.
“Congratulations to both John Kiely and John Gleeson”, said Cllr. Cronin. “It’s a case of young and old combining. It was a unique way of doing business. John Kiely has been well known over the years. It wasn’t his first horse and it might not be his last one either. We can look forward in years to come to the fact that John Gleeson will only get older, better and wiser. He has his whole life ahead of him at just 18 years of age.”
“A reception will be put in place for both”, he confirmed. “Both men deserve what they’re getting. That was agreed at the Corporate Policy Group meeting last week. We look forward to it whenever it will happen and a date will be fixed very shortly.”
A number of councillors from the District expressed their votes of congratulations and support to both Kiely and Gleeson, and noted that they look forward to honouring them officially in the coming weeks.
A reception was previously held in 2021 at Tramore Racecourse, where the Freedom of Waterford was bestowed upon Knockeen handler Henry de Bromhead, having won six races at the Cheltenham Festival, as well as the Aintree Grand National some weeks later.
