Son of trainer Jean-François Nivard, Franck Nivard was born in Avranches in 1979. Completing his apprenticeship at Graignes racing school combined with a stint at Marcel Vaudoit’s yard, he lifted the apprenticeship title in 1996. Then it was off to the great Jean-Pierre Dubois stables followed by Jean-Baptiste Bossuet’s, before bagging his first G1 triumph in the Critérium des Jeunes for Pierre-Désiré Allaire on board Nelson de Vandel. Extremely talented in both disciplines, he topped the 1,000-win mark in 2009 before reaching 2,500 victories in January 2016, just a few days ahead of his fourth Prix d’Amérique teaming up with Bold Eagle. The cool-handed rider currently boasts 24 Group I harness wins, 19 Group I mounted triumphs, notwithstanding an incredible 102 Group IIs in both disciplines. Runner-up to Champion driver Jean-Michel Bazire, he landed the jockeys’ championship in 2011. He has also held a trainer’s licence since 2006.

Franck Nivard's 43 Grade 1 wins