Adelaide jockey Jake Toeroek claims his first John Letts Medal
A year on from being surprisingly overlooked for the award, top jockey Jake Toeroek claimed his first John Letts Medal at the South Australian Racing Industry Awards on Saturday night.
A year on from being surprisingly overlooked for the award, top jockey Jake Toeroek claimed his first John Letts Medal at the South Australian Racing Industry Awards on Saturday night.
An outstanding season in the saddle saw Toeroek win both the metropolitan jockeys’ premiership and the statewide title, alongside feature wins in the Listed Behemoth Stakes, John Letts Cup, Durbridge Stakes and Without Fear Stakes.
Toeroek notched 56 votes to claim the medal, ahead of talented apprentice Rochelle Milnes (47) and Group 1-winning hoop Todd Pannell (46).
The John Letts Medal is decided by stewards through a scaled voting system, allocating points to jockeys who produce the best performances at each metropolitan, provincial and country meeting in the state.
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Any chances of a shock result were snuffed out early on Saturday night’s count, with Toeroek running away with a sizeable lead courtesy of a strong start to the season which included a five-win haul on Melbourne Cup Day at Morphettville.
A late season getaway in June saw Toeroek vulnerable late, as Milnes stormed home into second, but his early lead was too much to overcome, a metro treble at Gawler upon his riding return in July helping secure the medal.
For a second consecutive season, Toeroek was awarded the Glennon-Johnson Award for winning the metro premiership (47 wins). He also was also crowned Sportsbet Jockey of the Year for his 90 wins across the state.
While Milnes missed out on SA racing’s highest honour, she dominated the apprentice awards, winning all three titles, the Leon Macdonald Award for SA Apprentice of the Year, the Metropolitan Apprentice of the Year and the Caitlin Forrest SA Provincial and Country Apprentice of the Year.
Queman was crowned SA Champion Racehorse of the Year, the gelding won the Group 1 Oakleigh Plate at Caulfield for Shane and Cassie Oxlade. The sprinter claimed the honour ahead of Melbourne Cup-bound mare The Map and Air Assault.
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Will Clarken and Niki O’Shea claimed the Metropolitan Trainer of the Year award for the first time, while the Richard and Chantelle Jolly stable claimed a third consecutive CS Hayes Award for the most wins across all races in SA.
Garret Lynch also snared a three-peat, winning the SA Provincial and Country Trainer of the Year Award, while the Andrew Gluyas-trained Air Assault won the Best Performed Horse Award.
Another member of the Gluyas team was also celebrated, with Mollie Knowles winning the Stablehand/Strapper of the Year Award. Kirra Reynolds also took out the Trackwork Rider of the Year Award.
The Gawler and Barossa Jockey Club collected the Most Outstanding Achievement Award by a Club, while stalwart of the Port Augusta Racing Club Darren Bonetti received the award for the Most Outstanding Achievement by an Individual.
Originally published as Adelaide jockey Jake Toeroek claims his first John Letts Medal
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