Who Really Won The Melbourne Cup?

Did you watch the Melbourne cup? What a way to recognise female jockeys. What a great boost for people with Down syndrome. What a race.

This Melbourne cup no. 155 will be fondly remembered for all the right reasons.

Betting odds of over 100 to 1 with Michelle Payne, the jockey whom has raced Prince of Penzance 23 of 24 starts and her brother Steven Payne the strapper.
Made even more memorable by Steven being challenged with Down Syndrome, and Michelle being the first female jockey to win the CUP certainly made this a fairy tale event.

Some quick facts on Prince of Penzance:

·       NZ bred from sire “Pentire” and Dam “Royal Successor”

·       From the Sire of Dam “Mr Prospector”.

·       Bought from vendor Rich Hill Stud

·       Buyer John Foote Bloodstock pty ltd.

·       Paid $50,000

·       Prize money of $4.4M before Melbourne Cup 2015

·       6 yo Gelding, born 20/11/2009

·       Trained in the Ballarat Forest Lodge stable by Darren Weir.

·       Owned by A McGregor, A T Broadfoot, Galadi Holdings, Dalton racing and three syndicates

·       Won the race that stops a nation in fine style 2015.

Michelle’s winning speech certainly made it crystal clear of the issues faced by female jockeys, even from some of the horses owners.
Quote from The Guardian: 

“My sister Margaret and I both had a feeling we would win this race. It’s such a chauvinistic sport, a lot of the owners wanted to kick me off. Everyone else can get stuffed [who] think women aren’t good enough.

It was certainly a reward to both the owner in particular that did encourage Michelle to be the jockey and the trainer that she did race this horse.
The added bonus to secure not only the victory but a couple firsts in the history books as first female jockey to win this great race and Darren Weir first win as a trainer is nothing short of phenomenal.

Well done to all concerned and let’s see more of an equal opportunity for the woman of sports dominated by males. 

That doesn’t mean give girls more opportunity than their male counterparts but fair recognition and acceptance of whom is best for the job, male or female.
Any position should be earnt through training, perseverance, self-belief, determination and the will to win. 

 10 Quickie facts of Michelle Payne (courtesy of the Herald Sun)

·       Michelle was born in September 1985 and grew up on a property near Ballarat in central Victoria.

·       Her mum Mary died in a car crash when she was just six months old. Michelle has said in the past that her dad Paddy would talk to her daily about how much he loved Mary.

·       Michelle is the youngest of 10 kids. She has racing blood running through her veins and is the eighth Payne child to become a jockey - five of her older sisters and two brothers have also spent time as jockeys. Brother Patrick is now a well known trainer in Victoria.

·       Michelle rode her first race on Reigning, a horse trained by her dad, when she was just 15. And she won.

·       In March 2004, Payne had a horrific fall while racing at Sandown. Thrown headfirst onto the track she suffered a fractured skull and bruising on the brain. Her family begged her to retire from the profession but she resisted.

·       Payne’s first Group 1 win came in 2009. Riding Allez Wonder for the late Bart Cummings, she was victorious in the Toorak Handicap.

·       The next month Cummings offered Payne a ride in the Caulfield Cup where she became only the third female jockey to do so.

·       Michelle has said she believes her mum rides on her shoulder with her and has protected her in a number of big falls she’s had since Sandown.

·       Before the Melbourne Cup she had amassed prizemoney of more than $20 million on the horses she had ridden.

·       Michelle Payne became the first woman ever to win the Melbourne Cup when she rode Prince of Penzance - with odds of more than $100-1.

Horse Racing was the winner of this year’s Emirates Melbourne Cup