Tom O'Brien is an Irish

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 jockey

Jockey

A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...

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Son of Wexford-born Jim O'Brien, O'Brien began his career in racing riding out for his uncle, shay slevin in wexford before starting to ride out for uncle Aidan O'Brien where he rode legendary horses such as High Chaparral

High Chaparral

High Chaparral is a racehorse, winner of the Epsom Derby in 2002, and the winner of the Breeders' Cup Turf in 2002 and 2003 .-2001: Two-year-old season:...

 and Rock of Gibraltar

Rock of Gibraltar (horse)

Rock of Gibraltar is a Champion racehorse and stallion owned by Coolmore, for whom he currently stands in Ireland and Australia .He is named after the Rock of Gibraltar, a monolithic limestone promontory located in Gibraltar on...

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After riding in point-to-points, O'Brien moved to England in 2004 in the hope of getting more rides.

In the 2005-06 season, Tom was crowned Champion Amateur rider with 32 winners and turned professional in June of that year, winning two races at his first professional race meeting.

In 2005, O'Brien had his first big race win on Captain Corelli in the Tommy Wittle Chase at Haydock

Haydock

Haydock is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, in Merseyside, England. It contains all of the Haydock electoral ward and a section of the Blackbrook electoral ward. The village is located roughly mid-way between Liverpool and Manchester, close to the junction of the M6 motorway...

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In 2007 and 2008, O'Brien rode McKelvey in the Grand National

Grand National

The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...

, coming second to Silver Birch

Silver Birch (horse)

Silver Birch is an Irish-trained thoroughbred racehorse, owned by Brian Walsh of County Kildare. Ridden by Robbie Power and trained by 29 year-old Gordon Elliott, Silver Birch was the winner of the 2007 John Smith's Grand National at Aintree Racecourse, run on Saturday 14 April 2007...

 in 2007. At the 2009 Cheltenham Festival

Cheltenham Festival

The Cheltenham Festival is one of the most prestigious meetings in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, and has race prize money second only to the Grand National...

, O'Brien rode Silk Affair to a win in the Fred Winter Juvenile Novices' Handicap Hurdle

Fred Winter Juvenile Novices' Handicap Hurdle

The Fred Winter Juvenile Novices' Handicap Hurdle is a Grade 3 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles and 110 yards , and during its running there are eight hurdles to be jumped...

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O'Brien is a regular jockey for Philip Hobbs

Philip Hobbs

Philip Hobbs is a British racehorse trainer specializing mainly in National Hunt racing. He is based at stables near Minehead, Somerset....

 and Peter Bowen

Peter Bowen

Peter Bowen is an American writer born in 1945.He lives in Livingston, Montana andhas worked as a cowboy, hunting and fishing guide, folksinger, poet, essayist, and novelist...

and is based in the South West of England.