The roots of International Women's Day can be traced back as far as 1908 when 15,000 women marched through New York demanding voting rights, better pay and shorter working hours.
Today, we link from around the world in celebration of International Women’s Day to remember the fantastic achievements made by women - whilst calling for gender equality. In the racing world, we have some truly excellent female talent!
So, we thought we’d give you a rundown of 5 key players and their amazing achievements!
- Clare Balding, she used to be a leading amateur flat jockey and is one of the first names that comes to mind when it comes to horse racing. Her career has flourished through the years and has led her to become one of the most famous faces in sport! With a vast number of awards in her name, including the RTS Presenter of the Year, Sports Presenter of the Year, Racing Journalist of the Year, The Special Achievement Award at the Women and Film and Television awards and so many more! A true inspiration to us all!
- Venetia Williams, a seriously accomplished ex-amateur jockey and a truly impressive woman dedicated to the sport she loves - highlighted by the fact that she took the ‘Outstanding Contribution made by a Lady to Jump Racing’ award in 2010! As a trainer, she is most notable for the training of 100-1 shot Mon Mome, winner of The Grand National in 2009. Amazing!
- Nina Carberry, leading National Hunt Jockey who’s set Grand National Records by riding in the challenging race on six occasions and completing it four times – both records for a female jockey! She was also the second ever women to win the Irish Grand National. The talented jockey was universally acknowledged as the best female rider Ireland has ever produced!
- Katie Walsh, sister of Ruby Walsh is a truly fantastic jockey! Having ridden two winners at Cheltenham Festival,
being the third ever woman to win the Irish Grand National and being the best ever placing woman in the Grand National after placing 3rd on Sea Bass back in 2012! Evidently, winning the big ones is in the Walsh blood!
- Bryony Frost, a hugely popular young jockey – her talent and enthusiasm has owners and trainers in awe with racehorse owner, Robert Bothway describing her ride at Warwick a couple of months ago as ‘brilliant’ and ‘absolutely first-class’. It looks like she’s heading in the same direction as many of the fantastic female jockeys before her and is set to ride in the Grand National this year! Full of beans and utterly in love with the sport, she’s already an inspiration and we’re sure the best is yet to come!
…And there you have it, 5 brilliant women who have some serious achievements in the racing world! In a typically male dominant environment, they’ve proven that women really can compete!
Wondering when we’ll next see a female jockey at Fontwell? Keep an eye on our upcoming racedays -- we’ll always keep you up to date with entries and declarations on Twitter and Facebook on the run up to the event!
