John Patrick "
J. P."
McManus (born 10 March 1951) is an
IrishIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
businessman and racehorse owner.
Early life
Born in
LimerickLimerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...
, McManus began his business career at his family's construction plant hire firm, and then became an on-course bookmaker at Limerick's greyhound track, the Market's Field, before moving into horse ownership and punting and laying horses on the advice of his associate Jimmy Hayes. He now has a stud farm in
County KildareCounty Kildare is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county...
. He also became an accomplished backgammon player.
In 1982, he and his wife, Noreen, a former nurse, bought Martinstown Stud on over 400 acres (1.6 km²) in
County LimerickIt is thought that humans had established themselves in the Lough Gur area of the county as early as 3000 BC, while megalithic remains found at Duntryleague date back further to 3500 BC...
from the McCalmont family. McManus's first horse was Cill Dara, which had been owned by the late Edenderry solicitor and legendary gambler, Tim O'Toole. McManus is now
National Hunt racing'sNational Hunt racing is the official name given to the sport of horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Ireland in which the horses are required to jump over obstacles called hurdles or fences...
largest owner with over 400 horses in training. Famed for his huge, and mostly successful bets, he is well known to both racing fans and racing professionals although he remains somewhat an enigma.
In 2006, he built a €120 million residence on his Martinstown Stud farm in Co. Limerick.
Career
McManus's first really big win was a horse called Mister Donovan at Cheltenham. Mister Donovan was the second favourite and won the race after the favourite Angelo Salvini whipped around at the start. McManus over the years was close to jockeys A. Brown, Mr T. Busteed, Mr N. Madden, Mr T. M. Walsh, Mr F. Codd, C. Roche, Ron Barry, B. Fletcher, T. Carmody, D. Gillespie, M. Flynn, Dermot Browne, F. Berry,
John FrancomeJohn Francome MBE is a former National Hunt Champion Jockey.Born in Swindon the son of a railway fireman, his family had no connection with the horse racing world. At sixteen years old he became apprentice to Lambourn trainer Fred Winter and so began his career as a jockey. He rode a total of...
and others and the legendary race commentator
Peter O'SullevanSir Peter O'Sullevan is a retired horse racing commentator for the BBC from 1947 to 1997, and correspondent for the Press Association, Daily Express and Today.-Early life:...
who helped him meet "the right people", among them former Vernons pools boss
Robert SangsterRobert Edmund Sangster was a British businessman, thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder. He was British flat racing Champion Owner five times and his horses won many major races, including two Epsom Derbys, four Irish Derbys, two French Derbys, three Prix de l'Arc de Triomphes and a Melbourne...
. He says he "rarely bets" these days and when he does he usually describes them as "little bets." He says betting is "not an obsession" His distinctive green- and gold-hooped racing colours are those of the
South Liberties GAA ClubSouth Liberties is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based in Limerick, Ireland. The club is based in the parish of Donoughmore-Knockea-Roxboro, on the southern outskirts of Limerick City and is affiliated to the East Board of Limerick GAA. It is one of the oldest clubs in the country, founded...
.
The most famous of his horses is
IstabraqIstabraq is a retired Irish Thoroughbred racehorse who was most famous for his hurdling. He had an exceptional pedigree, being the produce of Sadler's Wells, a son of Northern Dancer, and a Secretariat mare making him a three-quarter brother to Epsom Derby winner Secreto. He won the Champion...
, a three-time winner of the
Champion HurdleThe Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. As part of a sponsorship agreement with the online sportsbook StanJames.com, the race is now known as the Stan James Champion Hurdle...
. He has had no other horses in training with Istabraq's trainer,
Aidan O'BrienAidan Patrick O'Brien is an Irish horse racing trainer. Since 1996, he has been the private trainer at Ballydoyle Stables near Cashel in County Tipperary for John Magnier and his Coolmore Stud associates....
, since O'Brien's move to Ballydoyle. Fifteen time Champion jockey
Tony McCoyAnthony Peter McCoy OBE , commonly known as A. P. McCoy or Tony McCoy, is a Northern Irish horse racing jockey....
is retained as his stable jockey. Former champion jockey
Jonjo O'NeillJonjo O'Neill is an Irish National Hunt racehorse trainer and former jockey. He is a native of Castletownroche, County Cork in Ireland. Based at the Jackdaws Castle training establishment in England, O'Neill is the private trainer to J. P. McManus, one of the largest owners of steeplechasers and...
trains some of his horses at the Jackdaws Castle facility which McManus helped finance. He has often appeared at race meetings in recent years with the British actor Clive Owen.
McManus's horse
Don't Push ItDon't Push It is a Grand National-winning thoroughbred racehorse.- Debut :Don't Push It began his career on the 5th December 2004 at Warwick Racecourse in a National Hunt Flat race . He finished 3rd.- 2005-2006 Season :...
, ridden by McCoy and trained by O'Neill, won the 2010
Grand NationalThe Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...
Steeplechase
Currency exchange and business
A significant part of his wealth, though not all, appears to have been derived as a private
foreign exchangeThe foreign exchange market is a global, worldwide decentralized financial market for trading currencies. Financial centers around the world function as anchors of trading between a wide range of different types of buyers and sellers around the clock, with the exception of weekends...
traderA trader is someone in finance who buys and sells financial instruments such as stocks, bonds, commodities and derivatives. A broker who simply fills buy or sell orders is not a trader, as they are merely executing instructions given to them. According to the Wall Street Journal in 2004, a managing...
which he oversees from his office in Geneva, Switzerland, his official residence. He also has a permanent suite at London's Dorchester Hotel. He returns to Ireland regularly. Currencies are apparently his speciality and his bets on currencies are bank-scale, always working on the advice of his good friends
Dermot DesmondDermot Desmond is an Irish businessman and financier. He is estimated to be worth €1.45billion and is ranked by the Sunday Independent as the sixth-richest person in Ireland.-Background and education:...
and Joe Lewis. He is featured in "High Rollers of the Turf", by Raymond Smith. He now has a wide portfolio of investments from leisure centres and betting shops to pubs and nursing homes. He is a large shareholder in Ladbrokes.
Together with business associate
John MagnierJohn Magnier is Ireland's leading thoroughbred stud owner and has extensive business interests outside of the horse breeding industry....
he built up a 28.89 per cent shareholding in
Manchester United F.C.Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
, which they sold on to businessman
Malcolm GlazerMalcolm Irving Glazer is an American businessman and sports team owner. He is the president and chief executive officer of First Allied Corporation, a holding company for his varied business interests, most notably in the food processing industry...
. In 2004, McManus set up 'Sporting Limerick' which sponsors
Limerick GAAThe Limerick County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Limerick GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Limerick...
teams.
He is also a keen
golfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
er and a close friend of
Tiger WoodsEldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No...
who got married at the
Sandy Lane (resort)The Sandy Lane Beach Resort and Spa is an upmarket, five-diamond luxury hotel and beach resort situated close to Holetown and Paynes Bay, in Saint James on the island-nation of Barbados. The Sandy Lane Beach Resort was first opened in 1961 on what was formerly a sugar cane plantation...
Hotel in Barbados, which he co-owns. The wedding at Sandy Lane was a gift from the owners of Sandy Lane to Woods.
He is a two-time winner of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship pro-am pairs competition, partnering
Padraig HarringtonPádraig P. Harrington is an Irish professional golfer who plays on The European Tour and The PGA Tour. He has won three major championships: The Open Championship in 2007 and 2008 and the PGA Championship, also in 2008.-Background:...
on both occasions.
Wealth
McManus's personal fortune is estimated at €1.2 billion (£900 million) but at its peak was probably closer to €2 billion. Like many others McManus is reputed to have been affected by the economic downturn.
Charitable contributions
In 1996, McManus established the J. P. McManus Scholarship Award which provides €6,750 each year for third level education to eight selected students at his former secondary school C.B.S. Sexton Street in Limerick. Every five years, he organises the J. P. McManus Invitation Pro-Am golf tournament in Limerick to raise funds for Limerick charities. He has been awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Limerick and has funded the new Kemmy Business School at the University. Jim Kemmy, a dogged socialist, was a close friend of McManus's. Kemmy introduced the famous Irish tax amnesty onto the floor of Dáil Éireann.
Gambling
From 1999, McManus enjoyed a very public battle with infamous Scottish bookmaker
"Fearless" Freddie WilliamsFreddie "Fearless" Williams , was a Scottish businessman and bookmaker. Born in the Ayrshire mining village of Cumnock, he was spared a career as a miner due to ill health at the age of 15 and went on to work for local soft drinks company Currys...
. On 16 March 2006, McManus won in excess of £1 million from Williams at the
Cheltenham FestivalThe Cheltenham Festival is one of the most prestigious meetings in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, and has race prize money second only to the Grand National...
, the pair's favourite battleground.
Health
McManus was diagnosed with cancer in late 2008 and is receiving treatment in the USA, he is said to be coping well.
External links