Last Updated on August 15, 2026
Annie Power wasn’t just a brilliant hurdler; she was the kind of mare who made you sit up and believe in the magic of National Hunt racing all over again.
A chestnut with a narrow white blaze, she combined power, fluency and a touch of class that set her apart in a golden era for Mullins and Ruby Walsh.
Her story is one of dominance, heartbreak, and a glorious redemption at the top table.
From Flat roots to bumper star
Annie Power was bred in Ireland by Eamon Cleary, a mare by the German Group 1 winner Shirocco out of the Group 3-placed Anno Luce, a daughter of Old Vic.
That pedigree pointed to a smart Flat stayer, but early on she was pointed at the National Hunt sphere instead. She began her racing life in bumpers, trained by the renowned Flat handler Jim Bolger.
Her debut came at Galway in August 2012, where she was ridden by Patrick Mullins and beat nine rivals. Three weeks later at Wexford, she started 6/4 favourite in a mares’ bumper and won by 15 lengths, showing a level of class that caught the eye.
After that, she was sold to Rich and Susannah Ricci and moved to Willie Mullins’ powerhouse yard in County Carlow.
Her first run for Mullins was a bumper at Listowel, where she led from the start and won by 61 lengths against just one opponent. It was a statement of intent: this was no ordinary mare, and she was going to be aimed at the top level over hurdles.
Finding her feet over hurdles
Annie Power’s hurdling debut came at Thurles in November 2012, in a field of 18 mares at odds of 1/2. She took the lead three flights from home and won easily by 13 lengths, a performance that confirmed her potential. Ruby Walsh then took over the reins, and the partnership quickly became one of the most effective in the game.
At Clonmel in February 2013, she was 1/3 favourite in the Kilsheelan Mares Hurdle, led from the start and won by six and a half lengths, eased down in the closing stages.
That set her up for a step up in class in the Grade 2 paddypower.com Novice Hurdle at Naas, where she was second choice behind AP McCoy’s mount Defy Logic. Walsh settled her just behind the leader and overtook approaching the last, drawing clear to win by three and a quarter lengths.
She bypassed the Cheltenham Festival that spring and instead went to Fairyhouse for the Grade 1 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares Novice Hurdle, starting 4/11 favourite. Walsh restrained her early, took the lead turning into the straight, and she powered away to win by 12 lengths from stablemate Glens Melody.
It was a dominant end to her novice season, and she was already being talked about as a future Champion Hurdle contender.
Stepping up and tasting defeat
The 2013/14 season saw Annie Power take on the best in Britain as well as Ireland. She started at Ascot in the Grade 2 Coral Hurdle, facing the top British hurdler Zarkandar, and won by five lengths, showing she could mix it with the very best.
She met Zarkandar again in the Dornan Engineering Hurdle at Cheltenham in January 2014, leading between the last two and winning easily by eight lengths in testing conditions.
Back in the mares’ division, she was 1/6 favourite for the OLBG Mares’ Hurdle at Doncaster and won by 15 lengths, prompting Ruby Walsh to remark that she was “very slick over her hurdles” and that “good horses aren’t complicated”. At that stage, she was 10 from 10, and the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham was on the agenda.
Instead, Mullins opted to take on the World Hurdle at the 2014 Festival, where she started 11/8 favourite against Big Buck’s and the rising star More Of That. Walsh held her up and moved up to dispute the lead at the last, but in the closing stages she was outstayed by More Of That, beaten by a length and a half. Mullins admitted afterwards that she had been beaten by a better horse that day, but also suggested she might have been “a little keen to be a three-miler”.
She was brought back in distance for the Grade 1 Mares Champion Hurdle at Punchestown, led throughout and won by seven lengths, a reminder that over two miles she was very hard to beat. That season ended with a record of 14 wins from 15 starts, with only that narrow defeat in the World Hurdle on her card.
The Cheltenham heartbreak and redemption
After a long break, Annie Power returned for the 2015 Cheltenham Festival in the OLBG Mares’ Hurdle, a race where she was odds-on favourite and the Mullins stable already had three winners on the card.
She took the lead at the second last and looked certain to win, but at the final flight she fell, handing victory to stablemate Glens Melody. Bookmakers dubbed it “the £50 million fall”, the most expensive tumble in National Hunt history for punters.
She bounced back at Punchestown in May, winning the Mares Champion Hurdle again, this time by 10 lengths from another stablemate, Anafilet. It was a dominant performance, but the memory of Cheltenham still lingered.
The 2015/16 season was all about redemption. After a minor comeback win at Punchestown, she was originally entered in the World Hurdle and the Mares’ Hurdle at Cheltenham, but when stablemate Faugheen was ruled out of the Champion Hurdle, the decision was made to supplement Annie Power for the showpiece race at a cost of around £20,000. It was a bold move, but one that paid off in style.
On 15 March 2016, in the Stan James Champion Hurdle, Annie Power became the first mare in 22 years to win the race, only the fourth ever after African Sister, Dawn Run and Flakey Dove.
Ridden by Ruby Walsh, she made virtually all the running, jumped fluently from hurdle to hurdle, and drew clear approaching the second last.
She stayed on strongly up the hill to win by four and a half lengths from My Tent Or Yours, with stablemate Nichols Canyon a head away in third. It was a performance of class and courage, and a moment of pure vindication after the previous year’s fall.
A champion’s record and lasting legacy
Annie Power’s career record stands at 17 runs, 15 wins, one second and one fall, with six Grade 1 victories including the Champion Hurdle, Ascot Hurdle, Doncaster Mares’ Hurdle and two Mares Champion Hurdles. She earned over £700,000 in prize money and was a key part of the Mullins, Walsh and Ricci set-up that dominated the mid-2010s.
After the 2016 Festival, she was aimed at the Aintree Hurdle, which she won in dominant fashion, but various setbacks in training meant she did not race again. In May 2017, Willie Mullins announced she was in foal to Camelot and would not return to racing.
Annie Power was sold to Coolmore Stud, where she has produced several foals by Galileo and Camelot. Her first foal, Mystical Power by Galileo, has already shown top-class ability, winning the Grade 1 Top Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree and the KPMG Champion Novice Hurdle at Punchestown in 2024, proving that her class has passed on to the next generation.
She remains one of the most admired mares of the modern era, not just for her Champion Hurdle triumph, but for the way she combined power, jumping fluency and a touch of stardust that made her a true fan favourite. In the pantheon of great Irish hurdlers, Annie Power’s name is written in very large letters indeed.
