This year's Ladies Day Style Award winner has been crowned at Aintree racecourse.
Donna Mulligan, 39, beat out hundreds of competitors in a classy, vibrant red dress by Karen Millen. It was her first time attending Aintree, and she'll be back tomorrow for the final day of the Grand National Festival 2022.
Ticket holders have gone all out for this year's Ladies Day, which returned as part of the much-anticipated Grand National. There's been hoards of glamorous people sporting suits, co-ords, sequins, monochrome looks and more.
READ MORE: Grand National 2022: Style Award finalists announced at Aintree Ladies Day
The popular event is taking over Aintree racecourse for three days of festivities - and it's the first time people have returned to the site since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, which saw a number of popular events cancelled, postponed or modified over the course of two years.
Style Award winner Donna, from Monaghan in Ireland, was "so excited" to be named as this year's winner, bagging a £5,000 cash prize, a £500 Never Fully Dressed/£300 House of Cavani voucher, a spa break and more. Speaking to the ECHO, Donna said she felt "amazing", adding: "I can't believe that I've won the prize, I'm just delighted."
She continued: "I didn't think there was any chance of winning, [I] just loved getting a nice dress and a nice hat and [dressing] up for the occasion and enjoy the racing so this is just unbelievable." When getting ready to attend Ladies Day, Donna did plan on entering the famed fashion contest but said: "I didn't think I had a chance to be honest with you, so I'm just over the moon. I can't believe it."
Donna's winning dress is from British retailer Karen Millen, while her shoes and bag are from LK Bennett, and her hat is from an Irish store. The dress only arrived on Monday morning and she chose her hat on Tuesday evening, describing her outfit as "very last minute".
She said: "I had another outfit I wasn't sure I was going to wear or not but I went with this in the end." Of her £5,000 prize money, the stylish race-goer "hasn't a clue" what to spend it on yet. Donna added: "I haven't even thought about that yet, I'm just going to celebrate now and enjoy the rest of the day."
The other two finalists at this year's Style Awards were named as Natalie Koromila, who finished in second place, and Josh Mack who came in third place. The second place prize includes £3,000, a £250 NeverFullyDressed voucher/£300 House of Cavani voucher, dinner and drinks for two at The Art School, and two Festival Zone tickets to Ladies Day 2023.
The third place prize includes £1,000, a £100 NeverFullyDressed voucher/£300 House of Cavani voucher and two Festival zone tickets to Ladies Day 2023. All three finalists also received a bottle of Champagne, flowers and chocolates to mark their win.
The Randox Grand National 2022 is taking place from Thursday, April 7 to Saturday, April 9. It is held at Aintree racecourse. ECHO reporters will be at Aintree over the course of the festival to keep you updated on all the latest news from the event.
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