Queen Elizabeth II was known for her passion for both horses and horse racing, and in a recent interview, broadcaster Clare Balding revealed the sweet reason behind the Queen's love of horse racing.
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Speaking on the BBC during the Queen's final journey from Northolt to Buckingham Palace, Clare said: "The Queen's passions were horses and dogs. Racing was the passion she shared with the public. The Queen loved to go to the stables to see horses on gallops in the morning and talk to all the grooms."
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The broadcaster went on to share that Her Majesty enjoyed horse racing because all eyes were not on her for a change.
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"Racing was such a wonderful thing for her to be able to enjoy, she liked the attention to be on others and that was the case at the races," Clare said.
The sports expert likened the Queen's love of being out of the spotlight at the races to her appearance at the 2012 Olympics, where she starred alongside Daniel Craig in a James Bond skit.
Her Majesty loves horses
In the clip, her Corgis could be seen, and Clare said the Queen loved that the attention was on her dogs rather than her.
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Her Majesty's love for horses extended to Highland and fell ponies in Balmoral, as well as her racehorses, according to Clare, who said that Queen loved to talk about animal behaviour.
Her Majesty enjoyed visiting horses in their stables
The presenter also noted the monarch was a very successful breeder of horses, and the keen equestrian had her first riding lesson at the age of three and continued to ride well into her 90s.
She was given her first pony, a Shetland mare, by her grandfather King George V when she turned four, and went on to establish herself as a veritable racehorse breeder. Numbering around 180, the Queen's horses and ponies are kept at various royal residences and stables, with many sharing a base at Balmoral and Sandringham.
Her Majesty was a keen horse breeder
Many of her thoroughbreds went on to win impressive titles, and in 2013 she even made sporting history when she became the first reigning monarch to win Royal Ascot's Gold Cup with her thoroughbred, Estimate.
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