Amateur jockey Sam Waley-Cohen posts surprising Grand National win in retirement race

LIVERPOOL, England — Amateur jockey Sam Waley-Cohen had quite the retirement ride Saturday.

The 39-year-old Waley-Cohen marked his final race as a jockey by winning the world-famous Grand National horse race aboard a big outsider in 50-1 shot Noble Yeats.

«It's a fairy tale. It's a fantasy,» said Waley-Cohen, whose full-time job is a dentist.

In a dramatic end to a race run before a crowd of around 70,000 spectators, Noble Yeats reached the last of the 30 fences neck and neck with 15-2 favorite Any Second Now.

Noble Yeats pulled away on the long run to the finishing line on the 4¼-mile course and won by about three lengths.