Nick Townsend reveals how a drugs ban proved to be the best thing to happen to top young jockey Kieran Shoemark

Ameasure of Kieran Shoemark’s upward trajectory are the staging points already reached in his career. The 26-year-old boasts a Royal Ascot winner, nine Group victories, including two Group 1 triumphs – Lady Bowthorpe at last year’s Goodwood Festival and Dreamloper at Longchamp in May - and he has ridden three winners for The Queen. Last year he recorded 80 victories, his best thus far.
Yet, this is also a man who will readily describe a moment in the we...