To the sense of loss felt today in Commonwealth countries and beyond must be added the sense of emptiness the Queen’s death leaves in the heart of British racing. The sport has lost not just a perennially enthusiastic supporter but its best friend.

Britain’s racecourses will no longer play host to her smiling face. The lead carriage at Royal Ascot will no longer feature a monarch ever-present since 1953. And the royal silks will never represent a queen so utterly in thrall to racing as Her Majesty was. It will take some years for these images to subside.

Horseracing for the Queen was a multi-faceted pastime.