Michelle Payne honoured with Longines Ladies Award

MELBOURNE Cup-winning jockey Michelle Payne says while she has not set a date, she can’t see her career in the saddle continuing much past the end of next year.

Jockey Michelle Payne has been honoured at the Longines Ladies Awards.

MELBOURNE Cup-winning jockey Michelle Payne says she will stop riding at the end of next year.

Payne has been recognised as an inspiration to women in racing globally as she became the first Australian to receive the Longines Ladies Award at a ceremony in Washington DC.

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“I will retire when I feel it is right and at the moment I am loving what I am doing,” Payne said.

“Unfortunately I am not getting a huge amount of (riding) opportunities, but I am making the most of what I am getting.

Michelle Payne in an embellished navy gown at the Longines Ladies Awards.

“For me, I would absolutely love to continue on to the end of next year; I can’t see myself riding on much long after that.

“Having a three to four year transition into training, and knowing that is going to be my life after riding, and accepting that I am going to get same thrill out of training after hanging up my silks is something that I am coming to terms with.

“Initially, I thought I would not ride past (the age of) 28 and Prince of Penzance probably kept me going, along with the dream of the Melbourne Cup,” the 31-year-old said.

Reed Kessler, Michelle Payne and Georgina Bloomberg at the Longines Ladies Awards in Washington DC.

“I am in a position now that I want to enjoy and then prepare myself for the future.”

Payne said she believed her success in the Cup and the subsequent attention had gone a small way to opening more doors for women in racing.

“I don’t know if it has shifted a lot but it definitely has to have helped,” she said.

“It is still the mindset of a lot of people in the Australian racing industry that the men are superior to us, which is disappointing, but we can only do what we can with the opportunities we get.”

Canadian businesswoman and ex-politician Belinda Stronach.

Australian model Jess Gomes.

She said she wanted to mentor and support female jockeys coming into the industry.

“I am looking at having a female apprentice and being able to guide them and help them with their riding and all the things behind the scenes that go on,” she said.

Payne has several international opportunities in her diary. She will compete in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot, the UK’s premiere racing carnival, next month and has been approached with a ride in the prestigious Epsom Derby.

She will be back in the UK in August to take part in the Shergar Cup International Jockey Challenge.

The Longines Ladies Award is an honour that has previously been bestowed on Princess Anne, French racehorse trainer Criquette Head-Maarek, Princess Zahra Aga Khan and showjumper Athena Onassis.

“It is very nice to be recognised for contributing in the equine industry. I love, and am passionate about, working with horses and to be recognised for that is very special,” Payne said.

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“It is a world apart from being on my farm in Ballarat, doing my own thing, to all of a sudden being in Washington DC accepting an award from Longines; it is quite incredible.

“I feel like I have had a very blessed life, obviously it has not always been easy, but there are so many things that have happened in my life for which I feel very blessed.”

Fiona Byrne travelled to Washington as a guest of Longines.

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