John Michael Purtell (1921 – 8 March 2017) was an Australian jockey who rode three Melbourne Cup winners.
[4] The best horse he rode was Comic Court to 19 wins even though he opted not to ride it in the 1950 Melbourne Cup.
[8][9] Purtell rode Fighting Force when it triple dead-heated with both Pandie Sun and Ark Royal in the 1956 Hotham Handicap, a rare event in racing.
[11][2][6][4] Purtell married in 1949 to Norma Giles and seven thousand people turned up to the church in Clifton Hill, Victoria.
[1] A sculpture of Purtell by John Frith is held by the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra.