THE news broke on Tuesday morning that Pat Eddery, champion Flat jockey 11 times and the winner of 14 British Classics, had died at the age of 63.

Eddery was one of the most successful riders of all time and partnered more than 4,600 winners.

He also won four Arcs and was aboard Dancing Brave for his breathtaking triumph in 1986.

His CV was punctuated with many of the world's other great races, including a brace of Gold Cups and two King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, and he was also champion jockey in Ireland in 1982, 27 years after his father Jimmy had won the title for the second time.

As well as Dancing Brave, he was associated with some of the best racehorses of the late 20th century, among them Bosra Sham, Sadler's Wells, Rainbow Quest, El Gran Senor, Grundy, Zafonic, Warning and Pebbles, on whom Eddery won the Breeders' Cup Turf in 1985.

Only Sir Gordon Richards has ridden more winners than him in Britain.

Eddery, born in Newbridge, County Kildare, Ireland, on March 18, 1952, rode his first winner when Alvaro struck at Epsom in 1969.

He was apprenticed to Seamus McGrath and Frenchie Nicholson and was champion jockey for the first time in 1974.

He retained the crown for the next three years and regained it in 1986, while his 11th championship in 1996 drew him level with the legendary Lester Piggott.

On a brighter note, the Cartier Awards took place on Tuesday evening, and it was fantastic to see Jack Berry receive the Cartier/Daily Telegraph Award of Merit.

The 78-year-old, who lives near Bedale, has spent a lifetime in racing as a jockey and trainer, as well as a tireless fundraiser and campaigner for injured jockeys. This year saw the culmination of his fundraising activities with the opening of the new £3m Jack Berry House, in Malton, which offers top-quality facilities for jockeys recovering from injury in the north of England.

On the horse front, there was no surprise to see Gold Horn land the Horse of the Year prize.

Harry Herbert, Cartier's racing consultant, said: "The Cartier Racing Awards are 25 years old – a tremendous landmark – and we could hardly have wished for a better season in European horse racing.

"Golden Horn carried nearly all before him and is a worthy recipient of Cartier Horse of the Year, while Solow and Muhaarar were equally dominant in mile and sprint races respectively.

"I think it would be hard to find a tougher filly anywhere in the world than Legatissimo, while the Coolmore-owned two-year-olds Air Force Blue and Minding were both very impressive. It is refreshing to see the Cartier Stayer Award go to a three-year-old, Simple Verse, for the first time since 1994.

"Jack Berry's whole life has been dedicated to racing and the opening of Jack Berry House in 2015 is a lasting testament to his tireless work on behalf of injured jockeys. We are delighted to announce him as the recipient of the Cartier/Daily Telegraph Award of Merit in 2015."

The three-day Open meeting at Cheltenham bursts into life this afternoon and Tom Scudamore is is delighted to be back riding after a short spell on the sidelines.

The jockey has been sidelined since suffering a knee injury at Huntingdon on October 13, but he was able to resume riding work this week.

He received the news he was hoping for when visiting a specialist on Wednesday, and while he had no booked rides yesterday, today should see him back on track and he is available to partner Paddy Power Gold Cup favourite Kings Palace for David Pipe tomorrow.

Scudamore said on Wednesday: "I went to see the specialist today and all the paperwork should be through in time. I'm just waiting to hear back from Dr Hill's office (British Horseracing Authority chief medical adviser Dr Jerry Hill).

"It's been just over a month, but that's behind us now. I was back riding out on Sunday and have been schooling all week, with plenty of rehab beforehand.

"I can kick on now, this is a good time of year and hopefully I can hit the ground running this weekend."