When I visited Audra and Tom Busteed in Cork freak gales were ravaging the coastline. Tranquil was hardly the best word to use; yet down at the bottom of the steep four furlong woodchip gallop, set within a wooded glen, was a peaceful stream in which many a Cheltenham hero had paddled as it carried its first ever rider. Slow, calm, meandering; oblivious to the storm of the outside world. This is indeed the tranquil nursery of Tom Busteed, the master tutor of the horse.

Lissa Oliver (European Trainer - issue 22 - Summer 2008)

Love him or hate him - odds are against indifference - trainer Sir Mark Prescott needs little introduction. The unapologetic Prescott isn't bothered whichever the sentiment, as he is very much his own man and comfortable - some might say all too much so - in his own skin.

Frances Karon (European Trainer - issue 22 - Summer 2008)

The Head family has a history steeped in horseracing, just as horseracing has a history steeped in Heads. Their dominance began in France in the late 1800’s with Alec’s jockey-turned-trainer grandfather Willie, a British expat. Alec’s father, also Willie, was a highly successful jumps jockey and dual purpose trainer in France.

Frances Karon (European Trainer - issue 21 - Spring 2008)

I’ve come to Willie Mullins’ yard in County Carlow, Ireland, expecting to see some strong horses and to hear some strong opinions. With Hedgehunter trotting past me up to the gallops, I’m certainly not disappointed in the first instance.

Lissa Oliver (European Trainer - issue 20 - Winter 2007)

He was riding in flat races in Norway at the age of eleven. He rode his first race over hurdles at thirteen, and one year later he became champion jump jockey. Yes, it may have been on a small circuit more than 50 years ago, but it was already clear that Åge Paus was a horseman a bit out of the ordinary.

Geir Stabell (European Trainer - issue 20 - Winter 2007)

Max Hennau used to train between 50 and 60 horses in Belgium. In 1973, he campaigned the colt Commodore to a domestic Triple Crown. Ten years later he handled the Belgium champion Little Vagabond. Bought for 1,000 guineas at Tattersalls in Newmarket, the small horse with a big engine won six races on the bounce at home and ran third in the Prix du Petit Couvert (Gp3) before being sold on to France. “Those were the days…,” he says.

Geir Stabell (European Trainer - issue 19 - Autumn 2007)

Meeting Mike de Kock, I soon knew that he most certainly is a case of a horseman turned businessman, and remaining a horseman first and foremost. Strange really, when it comes to light that he was brought up in a Dutch / English family with no connections to horses.

Geir Stabell (European Trainer - issue 18 - Summer 2007)

The damp of County Meath seems a long way from the sunshine of Melbourne, but to first season trainer Nick Cox it’s home from home. Mind you, it’s very misleading to refer to this as his first season, since Nick already has more than 180 winners to his name, back in his native Australia. So what made him decide to make the former Mitchelstown Stud here in Ireland his new base for training?

Lissa Oliver (European Trainer - issue 18 - Summer 2007) 

Guillaume Macaire is the current champion jumps trainer in France, a title he has held since 2003. He is based in the Charente Maritime region of France at La Palmyre racecourse. In 2006 he ran 231 different horses and regularly campaigns horses across Europe.

Aurelie Dupont-Soulat (European Trainer - issue 17 - Spring 2007)

When he rode his first race, the horse was a year older than him. They did not win. ”I never was a very talented jockey”, he says. He has many other talents though. The Norwegian Bendik Bø (39) is a successful racehorse trainer and inventor, based in Sweden. He was never afraid to try his hand at new tasks. He was shoeing his first pony when he was only 14 years old.

Geir Stabell (European Trainer - issue 17 - Spring 2007)

"I am a developer of horses, and all my horses are for sale". These words, by Tom Tate, soon give you a balanced view of the Yorkshire trainer when you first meet him. Tate, who has 36 boxes at his two farms in Tadcaster, may come across as a very careful, conservative man. But he is also a gambler.

Geir Stabell (European Trainer - issue 16 - Winter 2006)

Valfredo Valiani (46), the man who discovered Electrocutionist, trains around 50 horses from his base in Pisa, Italy. In love with his motherland, he admits to having had thoughts of moving his operation abroad, to England or France perhaps.

Geir Stabell (European Trainer - issue 15 - Autumn 2006)

It takes considerable courage and determination to pull up your family roots and start from scratch in another country where competition is at its highest level. In addition, a new language must be mastered as well as a complete change of environment and culture. That is the challenge that Pia Brandt has set herself when she decided to leave Sweden last year and take on the giants of Chantilly on their home ground.

Desmond Stoneham (European Trainer - issue 14 - Summer 2006)

It is at times assumed that a background in horses is almost essential for anyone to succeed at training but one individual that is certainly putting paid to such preconceived notions is Paul Nolan.

Ryan McElligott (European Trainer - issue 13 - Spring 2006)