Month: December 2023

Hollie Doyle, Rachel King Vying To Become First Female Winners Of International Jockeys’ Championship

Had life worked out differently, Rachel King and Hollie Doyle might have been familiar contemporaries in the jockeys' rooms around Britain.

Instead, the pair – who are among the dozen invitees to Wednesday's LONGINES International Jockeys' Championship (IJC) – have established their positions among the Group 1 elite but have done so on opposite sides of the planet.

Back in 2014, just as Doyle was beginning her extraordinary journey in the saddle, King made what proved to have been the inspired decision of moving to Australia.

Her career had failed to ignite and even included a few rides over jumps for English-based trainer Alan King, who ironically is responsible for the horse that has had the most profound effect in Doyle's story, the top-class stayer Trueshan.

King has not looked back since finding her feet on the Sydney scene with the legendary Gai Waterhouse, taking the champion apprentice title and becoming one of the leading names on the city's competitive circuit. This will be her first time in the LONGINES IJC.

“Last time I was here I went and watched some races at Happy Valley, I'd just ridden in an amateur ladies' flat race in Macau,” King said with a laugh. “So, it's been a bit of a journey to where I am now.

“I'm really looking forward to it, hopefully I'll have a few decent rides in there as well. Zac (Purton) was giving me a few little pointers, there are plenty of good people to learn from. I'll just try to get as much information as I can.”

Although King's accent certainly carries an Aussie twang after nearly a decade Down Under, she recognizes that it is still quite surreal to be competing under that flag.

“It's funny because obviously (Australian-based) James McDonald is representing New Zealand, I'm representing Australia – but I'm English – so it's a little bit mixed up but it's nice to get the privilege to do that. There's plenty of good jockeys in Australia so it's nice to be able to come and represent.”

Doyle, six years King's junior, has gone close in this competition already, her best being dead-heating for second in 2021.

King, meanwhile, was even more unlucky in a similar event in the World All-Star Jockeys Series in Japan in late August, losing out by a point to Mirai Iwata.

“This is a different group of jockeys, a different style of racetrack, but Japan was amazing, the first big competition I'd done,” she said. “I've only got to go one better and I can win. I led the whole way until the last race and then my horse broke down, so I'll try and do better!”

There are certainly similarities between the pair, who each stand at little over 1.5m tall but are deceptively strong, disciplined and tactically astute.

The likes of Hayley Turner and Michelle Payne have paved the way to Doyle and King's respective success in Britain and Australia and the conversation shifted to both being regarded simply as top-class jockeys a long time ago.

A victory for either as the first female rider in the history of the IJC would be a novelty for one year only; it will surely be followed by many more.

The post Hollie Doyle, Rachel King Vying To Become First Female Winners Of International Jockeys’ Championship appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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‘It Could All Happen Again’: Marquand A Live Chance In IJC Title Defence

The Longines International Jockeys' Championship (IJC) is the premier event of its kind in the world, and with good reason, as it brings together 12 of the most-accomplished riders from all corners of the globe vying for the winner's share of the HK$800,000 (£81,120/$102,320) prizemoney on offer.

The IJC, the true start of Longines Hong Kong International Races festivities, takes place annually at iconic Happy Valley Racecourse on Hong Kong Island, its tight turns and unique configuration offering up additional challenges, especially for jockeys based outside of Hong Kong.

Britain's Tom Marquand is one of four previous IJC winners in the mix Wednesday evening, joining Ryan Moore, Zac Purton and Karis Teetan, and looks to record his second victory in the event. The 25-year-old reinsman, whose wife Hollie Doyle finished on the IJC podium in 2020 (third) and again in 2021 (second) and also takes her chances this time around, is looking forward to perhaps winning the title outright, after sharing the spoils with Silvestre de Sousa 12 months ago.

“Last year was a bit turbulent but it's fantastic to be back,” said Marquand, who just last month won his first Breeders' Cup race in his first ride aboard Big Evs (Ire) (Blue Point {Ire}) in the Grade I Juvenile Turf Sprint. “It was great to win with Silvestre. You'd always rather win it on your own, but it's better to take it home with someone else than not at all.

“It looks like I've got a good enough book of rides that if things fall right it could all happen again, but it's a tough evening of racing and it's highly competitive.”

Marquand has two of his rides in the four-race competition for trainer Caspar Fownes, who has posted more wins at Happy Valley than any other trainer, and one each for Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro)'s conditioner Francis Lui and Ricky Yiu. The latter sends out top-weighted and 79-rated Splendid Living (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) in the third leg–carded as race seven–a Class 3 (80-60) over the 1650 metres. The 6-year-old gelding has a record of 4-3-1 from 10 runs over course and distance, but will need his best with the big weight and a tricky draw in 10.

Doyle is one of two females in the field and is joined British transplant and now Australian-based Rachel King. The 33-year-old showed that she could mix it with foreign riders in Japan's World All-Stars Jockeys, going down by a point to Mirai Iwata.

“Last time I was here I went and watched some races at Happy Valley, I'd just ridden in an amateur ladies' flat race in Macau,” King said.” So, it's been a bit of a journey to where I am now.

“I'm really looking forward to it, hopefully I'll have a few decent rides in there as well. Zac (Purton) was giving me a few little pointers, there are plenty of good people to learn from. I'll just try to get as much information as I can.”

Kazakhstan-born Bauyrzhan Murzabayev also makes his first IJC appearance off a strong season in France, during which he rode 60 winners–including 12 in black-type competition–for the legendary Andre Fabre. Like Marquand and Doyle, the four-time German and three-time Czech champion, jets in from Japan, where he is riding on a short-term contract for the second straight season.

“I am very lucky to have spent a year riding for Andre Fabre, who for me is a great trainer,” says Murzabayev. “I learned a lot from him and it was a good experience.

“I think I learn new tracks and places pretty quickly. But if somebody had told me 10 years ago 'you will be riding in all these top races,' I'm not sure I would have believed them.”

Also participating are Moore, James McDonald, Mickael Barzalona and Yuga Kawada from overseas, while Lyle Hewitson and Vincent Ho join Purton and Teetan in representing Hong Kong.

The IJC begins with the evening's fourth race at Happy Valley at 8.10pm local time (12.10pm GMT, 7.10am US Eastern Time). Click here for the race card.

 

The post ‘It Could All Happen Again’: Marquand A Live Chance In IJC Title Defence appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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NTWAB Announces Renewal Of Internship Support Program For Horse Racing Media Outlets

The National Thoroughbred Writers and Broadcasters have announced that the organization will assist racing media outlets in funding internships for the second year in a row.

The NTWAB's internship assistance program is designed to better enable horse racing publications and broadcast outlets to offer paid internship positions. The program can offer up to $2,500 each in matching funds to two outlets per year, with the hope of funding one publication and one broadcast outlet.

In its pilot year in 2023, the NTWAB program supported paid summer internships at The BloodHorse and The Saratoga Special.

The Saratoga Special's internship program traditionally takes place in the summer to coincide with the seasonal publication. Thanks to NTWAB support, Saratoga Special publisher Joe Clancy said the paper was able to include an additional intern position in its summer program, which was filled by high school student Alec DiConza.

“This year's internship at The Saratoga Special was a truly wonderful experience. Not only was it great fun to be at Saratoga Race Course almost every day for eight weeks, but I also significantly improved my skills in writing and communication,” said DiConza. “Through my work this summer, my ability to quickly craft a detailed piece of writing, such as a preview or a recap of a horse race, improved tremendously. Additionally, having the opportunity to speak with so many of the horse racing industry's most recognized names, while at first taking me out of my comfort zone, was extremely beneficial.

“Because of the well over 100 interviews I did throughout the summer, my confidence in speaking to others is higher than ever before. As a fan of racing for almost a decade, being able to work alongside some of the sport's great writers and to cover countless horse races myself was a dream come true. With all of the excitement and immeasurably helpful experience this internship provides, I think one would be hard pressed to find a better way for young people to get involved in racing.”

See one of DiConza's features from the Special here.

BloodHorse brought in Ali Cetinok, a junior majoring in journalism at the University of Kentucky. Cetinok has interest in covering all sports and found plenty to interest him during his time at BH.

“BloodHorse intern Ali Cetinok proved a valuable contributor for us in 2023,” said BloodHorse editorial director Frank Angst. “Ali contributed to all of our platforms, including an extensive magazine feature on universities and colleges that offer Thoroughbred breeding programs. He conducted an interview for our Daily newsletter, produced or assisted on videos for our BH+ platform, and contributed a sale-related feature, race previews, and race recaps to our website.

“We enjoyed having Ali and BH will look to participate in the program down the road. I'd recommend it to any NTWAB member.”

“It was an amazing experience. I was taught a lot, and I learned a lot,” said Ali Cetinok, who interned at BloodHorse. “The internship made me a better all-around journalist. It unlocked a new passion for me. I think something I'll always want to do.

“Of course, great people there. Help everywhere I looked. It was a great overall experience. I got to do actual journalism from morning to evening.”

An archive of Cetinok's work from his internship is available here.

Any publication or broadcast outlet in the horse racing sphere interested in applying for internship assistance for 2024 is encouraged to apply by Dec. 15. Applying outlets are asked to submit basic information about their internship's projected job responsibilities and funding request amount to an internship committee member or to ntwab2016@gmail.com.

The post NTWAB Announces Renewal Of Internship Support Program For Horse Racing Media Outlets appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Third Edition Of The Bahrain Turf Series Begins On Friday

The third year of the 10-race Bahrain Turf Series begins at the Rashid Equestrian & Horseracing Club on Friday.

In November, Sir Alex Ferguson scored a memorable win with Spirit Dancer (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in the $1-million G2 Bahrain International Trophy. A pair of owners who also have backgrounds in football, Michael Owen and Harry Redknapp, have runners in one of the first races of the Bahrain Turf Series, the Al Muharraq Cup By Texel Air over 2000 metres on the grass. Trainer Phil McEntee sends out the gelding Moktasaab (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) for Redknapp, while Hugo Palmer will saddle Box To Box (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) in the same race on Owen's behalf.

Running from December to February, the series provides opportunities for internationally trained runners (rated 85-100) to compete against local Bahrain based horses across 10 races. Each race is worth $80,000 with bonus prizes for the horses accumulating most points in the two divisions, sprint and middle distance. For more information on the series, please visit the Bahrain Turf Club website.

The post Third Edition Of The Bahrain Turf Series Begins On Friday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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