Mark Popham founded Racenews in 1990 and is the managing director. His enthusiasm for racing developed as teenager, with a trip to Goodwood at the age of 16 being the pivotal moment.

He has been fascinated by horseracing ever since, devoting his career to the sport.

York University, which has more racecourses near it than any other centre of higher education, was followed by a six-month spell at Raceform in London before poverty drove him to advertise in The Sporting Life for another job.

This resulted in two years with a professional punter in Lancashire,  studying form and

driving to the races across the North, Midlands and Scotland - a tremendous grounding.

Taken on as a trainee journalist by the Manchester-based Sporting Chronicle Handicap Book, he spent a year on the post-graduate journalism course at Cardiff University and three months with the Lancashire Evening Telegraph in Blackburn, passing his NCTJ exam.

His last year in Manchester was on the daily Sporting Chronicle and, when that folded in 1983, he moved to London to be one of six staff on the new Sporting Life Weekender.

He switched to The Sporting Life as chief news reporter in 1985 when a competitor, the Racing Post, was announced, and took on the role of news editor.

Mark turned freelance in 1988 and subsequently started Racenews.