As famous horses go, Aldaniti became so well known that his story, and that of his jockey, Bob Champion, was immortalised in the 1984 film ‘Champions’, starring John Hurt as Champion. The story revolves around the 1981 Grand National, which Aldaniti, the 10/1 second favourite, beat Spartan Missile, the 8/1 favourite, by four lengths. However, that bare result was merely the closing chapter in what Champion later described as a “fairytale come true”.
Placed in both the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Scottish Grand National in 1979, Aldaniti, not for the first time in his career, sustained a serious leg injury at Sandown Park later that year and was sidelined for over a year. Meanwhile, Champion, 31, stable jockey to Josh Gifford at Findon, West Sussex and at the height of his career, was diagnosed with testicular cancer in July 1979. He required an orchidectomy, followed by a combination chemotherapy regimen, but eventually recovered sufficiently to return to racing, as did Aldaniti. Following a remarkable course of events, Aldaniti emerged as a bona fide contender for the Grand National when winning the Whitbread Trial Chase, run over three miles at Ascot, under Champion in February 1981.
Of course, the best was yet to come. Their tear-jerking victory at Aintree on April 4, 1981 made Aldaniti and Champion household names and thousands of well-wishers turned out to welcome the horse home to Downs Stables in Findon. Champion rode Aldaniti, by then a 12-year-old, again in the 1982 Grand National, but the partnership made it no further than the very first fence.
Subsequently retired to the farm belonging to his owner, Nick Embiricos, in Kirdford, West Sussex, Aldaniti “worked tirelessly”, as Champion put it, to help raise money for the Bob Champion Cancer Fund. He died peacefully, aged 27, and was buried in the paddock where he spent his dotage.