Death of a racing man: Huge pressure had been building on Paddy Dunican in the months before his tragic death

Paddy Dunican was the manager of Kilbeggan Racecourse

Maeve Sheehan

Farmers, jump jockeys, well-heeled representatives of the sport of kings, the President Michael D Higgins’s aide-de-camp and many more besides; they came in their hundreds from all ranks of Ireland’s horse racing industry to pack the Church of St James for the funeral of Paddy Dunican on Wednesday.

The veteran manager of Kilbeggan racecourse was not a household name but in the world of jump racing he was a near legendary figure and not just in his home county of Westmeath. His passion for the sport captured horse racing’s beating heart.