Sunday, May 3, 2026

Soumillon: Arrogance? You can’t make everybody happy

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There is a self-confidence that exudes from star Belgian jockey Christophe Soumillon, and if you look at his glittering CV, it is not hard to see why.

A 10-time French champion jockey, Soumillon has been making headlines for over 20 years, having ridden the likes of Dalakhani, Zarkava, Thunder Snow, Dylan Thomas and Excelebration, to name a few.

And if you thought his exploits were limited to the Flat game, you would be wrong.

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Watch the full feature ‘Christophe Soumillon: Cavalier’ all this week on Sky Sports Racing

He won the French Champion Hurdle back in 2010 on Mandali for trainer Jean-Paul Gallorini, following in his father Jean-Marc Soumillon’s footsteps, himself a jump jockey in Belgium.

But when you are that good, you are always likely to ruffle a few feathers, and Christophe would admit himself he has had his fair share of disagreements over the years, including one that led to a split with owner The Aga Khan between 2010 and 2013.