Racing royalty Francesca Cumani crisscrosses the globe for family and her favourite sport
For Francesca Cumani, a love of horse racing is in her DNA. Despite her elite racing pedigree, she’s making her own mark on the racing world as she excels in the fashion and commentary stakes.
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Francesca Cumani is as graceful, impeccably groomed and captivating as the elite racehorses she has become famous for commentating on during the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
Born into English racing royalty, the 36-year-old daughter of successful trainer Luca Cumani, whose father Sergio was also a champion trainer, has a passion for horses and racing that runs deeper than her blood connection.
“I was very much born into it, fully immersed from a very young age,” Cumani says.
“In England, it’s a bit different to Australia in that a lot of trainers live on the property where they train their horses so I would literally wake up and open my curtains and there would be horses right outside my window.
“I was instilled with a passion for horses from inside the womb I think.”
While her father and grandfather undoubtedly inspired her, it was her grandmother Elena who showed her what a woman was capable of in a traditionally male-dominated world.
“She was quite amazing because she had no involvement with horses whatsoever, she was married to my grandfather and he became involved later in life,” Cumani says.
“He inherited a stable of horses from a relative that died and he took to it very well and trained a lot of winners and he was always at the stables or at the races or doing something with the horses.
“I think she got fed up and went to the local riding school and said, ‘I want to learn how to ride and I want to be riding in races by the end of the year’.
“They laughed at her but she did exactly that.
“She became a champion amateur jockey on the jump and the flats riding against the men.
“She was really good. She was quite a formidable character.”
Elena showed her granddaughter that it was possible to be beautiful and appreciate the finer things in life, as well as being respected for her equine knowledge and ability.
“At the same time she was super stylish,” Cumani says of her grandmother.
“Even at the age of 75, she only ever dressed in Giorgio Armani and drove an Audi TT around Milan.
“She was one of those pretty amazing characters.”
A regular presenter on the Melbourne Cup Carnival coverage, previously for Channel 7 and now for new TV rights broadcaster Network 10, Cumani has become just as
well-known for her expert commentary as for her racing fashion.
“They do go hand-in-hand, fashion and racing,” Cumani says.
“I’m comfortable with it because when I’m at the races, especially on a big day with a huge significance where people are watching from home, I think what you wear reflects the significance of the event.
“I match what I wear to the scale of the day, so when it’s Melbourne Cup day, you really do try and have a cool outfit on.
“The amount of people that will say to me, ‘I will only watch or my wife watches or my kids (to see what she’s wearing)’.
“That’s great to me because if they’re going to watch for that reason, then hopefully they’ll like what they’re seeing and they’ll watch the whole show and cultivate this love for horses and racing as well.”
Cumani says her sense of style has evolved over the years to become a bit more adventurous.
“I’d say I’m fairly classic, although the stylist I use in England is a friend of mine and she definitely pushes my boundaries a lot — a bit more eclectic and random,” she says.
“I think I used to be a bit boring and conservative, but now I
have more fun with it and actually it’s quite good fun.”
Cumani’s ability to effortlessly and masterfully combine the two key passions of racegoers has seen her star rise in Australia and internationally as a high-profile racing personality.
But with that comes increased scrutiny on her personal life, which has been less welcome.
She split with her Australian polo captain husband, Rob Archibald, late last year and almost immediately after stepped out with new partner, fellow Brit and iTV racing commentator Oli Bell.
Married in 2014, Cumani and Archibald welcomed son Harry in April 2016.
“People feel like they know you because they see you on TV so they feel like they’re allowed to comment and have an opinion,” Cumani says.
“That’s fine, you just have to stick to your guns and do what you think is right.”
The fact new partner Bell is also in the media has helped the couple cope with the increased attention around their relationship.
“If anything it’s been positive because we understand each other’s worlds and we very much are there for each other and support each other through it,” Cumani says.
While Cumani says remarrying is “not really at the front of my mind at the moment”, she adores motherhood and is grateful for the new perspective it has given her on life in general.
“I think like a lot of women it changes you in the sense that life becomes about that person,” she says.
“It doesn’t really revolve around you anymore, it becomes about them.
“Your first thought in everything you do is about them, which is a change because it makes you much less selfish and probably a better person for having such a gorgeous little human to adore.”
Sharing custody, particularly between England where Cumani is based and Australia, where Archibald lives, can be challenging.
“It’s not easy, but I try and find the positives,” she says.
“(Harry) has a great exposure to different things.
“He has a rural farm life here where he gets to hang out with lots of different people and do different things and then he has this slightly different one in England.
“I think it makes him this very rounded little person and I think a lot of it’s about communication.
“He’s of an age now where he understands things and you can talk to him.
“I think keeping things positive and open is really important.”
With accomplished riders for parents, does Harry share the same love of horses?
“He prefers tractors — he’s three,” Cumani laughs.
“I took him to the races the other day and there were 20 horses galloping down the straight at Flemington and he went, ‘Yeah great, where are the tractors?’.
“But he’s very natural around horses and he’s very confident.”
Returning to Australia for the Melbourne Cup Carnival is a highlight of the year for Cumani, who now spends nine months based near her family property at Newmarket, near Cambridge.
She admits to being surprised at the unexpected change to the host network of the event, after Ten took over the rights this year in a five-year deal following Seven’s dominance of racing coverage for the past 16 years.
“I was surprised when it changed stables (but) the importance to me is still being a part of the Melbourne Cup Carnival,” she says.
“I feel a bit disloyal saying that having started this journey with Channel 7 and having an amazing time with them, I’ve enjoyed every minute.
“For me, it’s a highlight of the year. I’d hate to miss and not be a part of it.
“The horses will still be the focus for me so that won’t be particularly different.
“From an outside perspective, it’ll be a fairly familiar role.
“I’ll be there previewing races and analysing post-race in the company of Pete Moody and the race team.
“I’ll be there to get more of the opinions and analysis from the other members of the team.”
Cumani says the thrill of being a part of such an internationally renowned event never wears thin, even after 10 years as a commentator.
“When you’re in the position that I’m in and you’re there on race day and you’re so involved in the day and the races and you get to immerse yourself in the stories of the horses, jockeys, the owners, the people around it, it’s such a huge buzz,” she says.
One of her most memorable moments was presenting on the day Michelle Payne became the first female jockey to win the Melbourne Cup in 2015.
“Anything that gives exposure and highlights women in the industry is good, and obviously
Michelle’s win was huge because it made headline news around the world,” Cumani says.
There are five women on Ten’s racing team this year and Cumani believes the role of females in the sport is evolving.
“For a really long time, racing has been perceived as a male-dominated sport and it shouldn’t really be because there’s no reason a woman can’t train a horse as well as a man,” she says.
“Some people might think a woman can’t ride a horse as well as a man because it’s a strength thing but for me it’s a perception and prejudice thing.
“I think if women got as many opportunities as men did then they’d be on very much a level playing field.
“Especially in the media, there’s absolutely no reason why women can’t talk about horses as well as a man.
“Things are changing.
“There are more women involved in ownership (and) there’s more women hands on with training and riding.”
She sees trainer Gai Waterhouse as a great inspiration to women in the industry.
“She’s been incredible, a real pioneer,” Cumani says.
“She’s such an amazing brand herself.
“She’s so entertaining when you meet her, she’s brilliant on TV and she’s great at her own PR.”
Cumani hopes to follow in the footsteps of her father, grandfather and brother Matt to one day become a trainer.
“I do have aspirations to become a trainer,” she says.
“Beyond the media stuff, I’m involved with the horses in terms of ownership and breeding.
“I have mares in both England and Australia.
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“I really enjoy doing that alongside the work I do on TV.
“The more successful, the more work I’ve done on TV, the more it’s taken me away from what I love which is hands on with horses.
“Maybe one day I’ll have my own stable of horses, I’d love to.
“I’ve acquired a lot of knowledge and would love to put some of that into practice.”