Bookmakers intend to put their full weight behind a campaign to have Frankel and his trainer Sir Henry Cecil’s achievements marked across the general sporting world.
In 2010 racing pulled together to help champion National Hunt jockey Tony McCoy to become Sports Personality of the Year.
Now a similar task is needed to propel Team Frankel into the mindset of the sports public in a year that has seen so many iconic feats in events such as the Olympics and the Ryder Cup.
“We are offering 8-1 that Sir Henry Cecil gets a special lifetime achievement award and we are also offering 10-1 for Team Frankel (Sir Henry, Frankel and Tom Queally) to be team of the year,” said David Williams of Ladbrokes.
“It’s been some year with the Olympics the Ryder Cup so there is plenty of competition, but the fact we are mentioning racing in the same breath as those is testimony to what the Frankel team has achieved.
“When Tony McCoy won the main award racing galvanised itself to get organised and try to get a campaign going to get him over the line.
“That is what we now have to do with Frankel and Sir Henry Cecil. These guys deserve all the credit and we will throw our absolute full weight behind it.
“The Sir Henry Cecil lifetime achievement award would be fitting because of what he has achieved. This is what we have to do. We must not rest on our laurels and there’s absolutely no chance of that.”
Frankel said farewell to racing before he embarks on a career at stud by stretching his unbeaten record to 14 in the Qipco Champion Stakes in front of a full house at Ascot on Saturday.
Williams saluted a horse that has done so much for the sport and feels racing should cash in on his popularity.
“He is the best thing that has happened to this sport for a good many years,” he said.
