King Charles' runner fails to win at Salisbury Racecourse
Educator has lined up in the famous silks at the city's track
King Charles III has had his first runner ever as Monarch today (Thursday 29th September) at Salisbury Racecourse.
Educator took to the Netherhampton track in the famous purple, gold and scarlet silks, associated with Queen Elizabeth for more than 70 years.
His Majesty has taken over the string of racehorses owned by his mother following her death on September 8th.
But the new monarch will have to wait for his first winner, as Educator was beaten into second place.
Tom Marquand rode Educator in today's race - he tweeted about his pride at representing the Royal Family:
There was plenty of respect for the occasion too, with the crowd at Salisbury recognising the significance:
King Charles had previously had runners in different colours with the Queen consort, when they were Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall.
The William Haggas-trained Educator was a one-time Classic hope for the late Queen, but the three-year-old has not run since winning a Newmarket handicap by the narrowest of margins in April.