Former England star Michael Owen makes jockey debut

Former England star Michael Owen has made his debut as a jockey, in a charity race at Ascot.

The 2001 Ballon d'Or winner - who played for a number of top clubs including Liverpool, Manchester United and Real Madrid - has long been a lover of horse racing.

However as a professional footballer he was never allowed to ride due to the risk of injury. He has therefore only been riding for a few months.

He had to cut his weight for the race by nearly two stone, which he described as a challenging experience, but the sacrifice paid off as he finished his first ever race in second place.

After the race he said: "It was such an exciting couple of minutes, I don't know how long it took but turning in when you're near the front and you can see the finishing line, it gave me a real adrenaline rush."

You can watch Live Racing on ITV1 from 1.30pm on Saturday.