Impressive jockey Liam Harrison has timed his return from injury almost as well as he times one of his runs towards the winning post.

The 20-year-old has had a frustrating few months, firstly with a burst appendix and then a broken collarbone, but now he’s fit and raring to go ahead of the first Cheltenham meeting of the season later this week.

The two-day Showcase Meeting takes place on Friday and Saturday and Harrison is in good spirits after returning to action at the end of last week.

And Harrison, a conditional jockey for top Cotswolds trainer Fergal O’Brien, has very happy memories of the Showcase Meeting.

“I had my first ever winner at Cheltenham in October 2019 in what was my first ever ride there,” he said.

“It was on Petit Power, he hadn’t run for nearly 600 days. It was brilliant, it was a close race, I wasn’t winning at the last.”

That’s one of four winners that Harrison has ridden at the home of National Hunt racing, which is very good going for someone who is in only his fourth season as a professional jockey.

And while that first winner will always be fresh in Harrison’s mind, it’s fair to say that his second win at the Showcase Meeting on Samba Dancer was just that little bit better.

“It was the first race on the Saturday, Cheltenham was rammed,” he recalled.

“The first time I won it was hammering it down and it was one of the later races, this one was really special, the crowd were amazing.”

Both those wins were for O’Brien, as indeed were Harrison’s two other Cheltenham successes.

“I won on Ask Dillon during Covid in April 2021,” he said. “There was no crowd, it was eerie. It was still special but if ever a place was built for a big crowd it’s Cheltenham Racecourse, it’s the best place in the world for a big crowd.”

Harrison’s most recent winner at Cheltenham came in April this year aboard Captain Cattistock, two months after the same combination had won the Edinburgh National Handicap Chase at Musselburgh.

“His aim is the Grand National,” said Harrison, “he’s an exciting prospect.”

Harrison, who lives in Withington, is an exciting prospect too, of course. Last season he clocked up 32 winners and while this season has been less productive for obvious reasons, it’s certainly not curtailed his ambition.

At the time of writing he has 60 career winners to his name and he said: “The first ambition is to ride out my claim, I need 75 winners so hopefully I’ll get that done this season.

“This is a big time for me because then I’ll be competing on a level with the top jockeys and hopefully getting some big rides.

“Like any owner, trainer or jockey, I want to win the Gold Cup. It’s the big races that have always excited me, I love the pressure of the big races.

“Every day, and I mean every day, I think about trying to win the Gold Cup.”

It’s that kind of drive and enthusiasm that has helped Harrison get to where he is today, of course, but while talent and hard work have got him this far, he readily points out that he would never have become a jockey but for the remarkable support of his family.

“They’ve been amazing,” he said. “My mum, my sister, my granny. They gave up everything to support my dream.”

Mum is Heather Cullimore, his sister, who is 23, is Emily Harrison, and his granny is Christine Cullimore and they are all still based in Bath where Liam lived before moving to the Cotswolds.

“I didn’t have a racing background,” he said. “My mum used to watch the racing on TV and I really enjoyed it, that’s how I first got interested.

“But I didn’t get on a pony until I was nine, I’m certainly not one of those people who can say they were able to ride before they could walk.”

It was soon obvious that Harrison was a bit of a natural, of course, and that’s where he also had a bit of good fortune because his great uncle, William McGrath, a very successful businessman, also had a keen interest in horses.

“It was between my mum and my great uncle,” said Harrison. “My mum made it happen and my great uncle helped us financially.

“I had about 90-odd pony rides over six years, I had about 15 winners.”

And while that doesn’t sound a lot, Harrison was learning all the time.

“I started riding out for Neil Mulholland, who was based just outside Bath, when I was 12,” Harrison said. “I worked for him for five years on and off before I came to Fergal’s three years ago.”

And it was while he was with Mulholland that he met his racing hero, someone who he still holds in the highest regard today.

Harrison takes up the story.

“When I was growing up I absolutely loved Denman. He won the Gold Cup in 2008 and I was absolutely obsessed with Ruby Walsh.

“I know Sam Thomas rode him that day but I’ve always looked up to Ruby Walsh so when I lead him out when I was at Neil Mulholland’s that was really special.”

It’s often said that you are better off never meeting your hero for fear of disappointment but that certainly wasn’t the case for Harrison.

“He was brilliant,” he said. “He obviously won’t remember me but he was really nice, he was great.

“And he’s still brilliant on TV, I still watch replays of him riding every day. I know Tony McCoy had more winners but Ruby was the most technically gifted jockey I have ever seen.”

And Walsh is also held in the highest esteem by Paddy Brennan, another top jockey for whom Harrison has huge regard.

Brennan, now 41 and a Gold Cup winner on Imperial Commander in 2010, is stable jockey for Fergal O’Brien and Harrison said: “I can’t put into words how lucky I am to work with him.

“He’s so generous, we speak every day. He massively admires Ruby Walsh, we have a similar outlook, I’m so grateful to him.

“He’s achieved everything, he’s won a Gold Cup, ridden 1,000 winners.”

Brennan is up among the top jockeys again this season, of course, and a good number of those winners have been provided by O’Brien, who is the leading trainer in the country with more than 60 winners.

“Since we moved the yard to Ravenswell Farm it’s been amazing,” said Harrison. “We had 104 winners a couple of years ago and 128 winners last season.

“We keep saying the horses are in good form but they’ve always been in good form, they’ve never really dipped.”

This season’s winners include Accidental Rebel’s Grade 2 success at Chepstow under Brennan earlier this month and Harrison said: “That was his fourth win of the season. He came to us from Henry de Bromhead, he only cost £7,000.

“The big wins are coming. Fergal is an unbelievable trainer, I’m lucky to have so many good people around me.

“He’s brought me on and given me the right rides at the right time.”

Harrison will be hoping that continues at Cheltenham at the end of the week, of course, and Cheltenham Racecourse has always had a special place in his heart.

“I’ve always been absolutely obsessed with Cheltenham,” he said. “I’ve always visualised riding winners there.”