Friends and admirers from around the racing world came together in London's Fleet Street May 19 for a memorial service in which former British Horseracing Authority chair Joe Saumarez Smith was remembered as a great servant of racing and an exceptional man.
Joining family members and many of those who worked with Saumarez Smith at the BHA were numerous prominent figures from racing in Britain, Ireland, France, and Japan. They assembled in St. Bride's Church for a celebration filled with warm words and glorious music.
Saumarez Smith died at age 53 in February having served the majority of his time as British racing's senior leader with lung cancer, a disease that ultimately brought an end to a life in which the one-time journalist proved himself to be a successful entrepreneur, punter, and leader.
Saumarez Smith's brother George, former BHA chief executive Julie Harrington, and John Gosden all gave readings during a service that the Rev. Canon Dr. Alison Joyce opened by telling the congregation that Saumarez Smith had been "a wonderful and extraordinary man."
That was confirmed in an address given by close friend and gaming business partner Michael Brady.
"Joe could move effortlessly between worlds," said Brady. "He was just as comfortable walking around a smoke-filled Chinese bookmakers in Toronto as he was hosting the King and Queen at Royal Ascot. He didn't change to fit a room. The room adjusted to him.
"Beneath all the charm and wit, Joe was a man of real integrity. He believed in fairness, tolerance, and kindness. They weren't just ideas, they were how he lived. He supported knife crime charities and prison reform, quietly helping countless individuals. He treated everyone with respect, regardless of background or title."
Saumarez Smith certainly would have loved The Choir of St. Bride's, whose powerful rendition of Waterloo Sunset brought applause to the church, while three members of the choir combined racing and music in their rendition of I Got The Horse Right Here from Guys And Dolls.
Honoring Saumarez Smith on behalf of racing was Ascot chairman Sir Francis Brooke, who praised the long-time racehorse owner for his attempts to improve the sport.
Brooke said: "His life experience represented a rare example of someone who felt equally comfortable in the worlds of racing and betting.
The symbiotic relationship that exists between the two is crucial to the long-term health of racing and will always be so. If that can evolve from what are too often adversarial positions to a partnership that can be genuinely constructive and collaborative, what a wonderful tribute that would be to Joe, who did everything he could in life to achieve that."
Recalling that life and the man who lived it, Joyce summed up her subject to perfection, stating: "Joe Saumarez Smith was phenomenal, a man of unlimited energy, enthusiasm and intellect, fearless, stylish, gregarious and wise.
"The world was undoubtedly the richer for his place within it and those whose lives he touched were undoubtedly the richer for having known him."
