amy-jo hayes.

​When the recipient for Ireland’s ‘Ride of the Year’ in 2023 was named as Amy-Jo Hayes, my reaction was a mixture of what! and how! Given Colin Keane and Billy Lee ride in Ireland, along with a dozen other top-notch jockeys, it came as a surprise that the winner of the award was someone I had barely heard-of. I knew her name, though only through seeing it on race-cards in the Racing Post, on the few occasions she was granted the opportunity to display her riding ability.
I was so surprised that she had impressed enough of the right people to be even nominated for the award, let alone take home the trophy, that I penned a letter to the Racing Post suggesting it might be time for Irish racing to stage a number of races restricted to female professional. I was aware that there is already a fair few ‘Ladies’ only races in Ireland, though these races are usually dominated by female amateurs, with the apprentices – all professional female flat jockeys in Ireland are apprentices – overshadowed. I exclude Rachel Blackmore as though she holds a flat licence, she is predominately a jumps jockey.
In Britain, flat racing is brightened by having so many talented female professional jockeys, with Holly Doyle and Hayley Turner as popular with spectators as Murphy, Moore or Buick. And plenty of females have ridden out their claim and continue to ride winners. In Jo Mason we have a hidden gem, I believe, who will finally be noticed by the trainers who matter and Amy Waugh is as strong a female as any of her male colleagues. Irish racing is not so blessed and the sport is missing out on the good publicity that natural diversity provides.
On reviewing the letters I have had published in the Racing Post, I wondered what has happened to Amy-Jo Hayes since winning her award at the end of last season. I expected her career would blossom on the back of her high-profile success, awarded to her for ‘a perfect ride from the front’, and on Googling her name, I have discovered she is currently riding in Australia.
I cannot know whether she is in Australia for the experience or if she is now continuing her career out there with the ambition to make it her home, as Bryony Frost has chosen to do in France. Both, I suspect, have chosen to travel for the same reason. If I am correct, this is a sad indictment on the sport in both Britain and Ireland. 
You may say the sport will not suffer unduly for these two women choosing to go overseas for the sake of their careers. And you would be right, of course. And jockeys down through the decades have left the land of their birth to seek their fortune elsewhere in the world. But then and now are two different worlds. Back then, racing stables in Britain and Ireland had no problem finding staff. Now there is a grave shortage of native people willing or wanting to work the long hours required of them in racing stables, albeit the life has so many benefits than working in a factory does not.
There is a short video on-line where Amy-Jo Hayes details her work schedule, it included a 6 am start, riding work on up to eight-horses at the stables where she was employed, riding out for another trainer during what others would look upon as their lunch-break, dealing with her own horses in the afternoon, before heading back for evening stable at, if I remember correctly, 3-30 pm.
That is what the trainer who employed her would need to replace when Amy-Jo Hayes went to Australia.
Irish racing needs help from its governing bodies in order to maintain all levels of people who work in the racing industry, and this should include ensuring everyone is allowed the opportunity to be successful in which ever aspect of the sport they are employed in. I commend Ireland for the jockey restricted meetings they stage, as that allows jockeys below the top level the opportunity to earn some extra cash and gives an incentive for jockeys to continue their careers in Ireland. It must be remembered, jockeys are jockeys from dawn to dusk and many small-time, and even the very top trainers, rely on jockeys to ride-out in a morning before they go off to the races. One Amy-Jo Hayes will not cause a ripple, in general, through her absence, 10 Amy-Jo Hayes’ will be noticeable. 100 A-J H’s and there is a hole to be filled. All any jockey hopes for, I suggest, is the opportunity to impress and I feel Ireland could do more to help and promote the female professional jockey to, if not break, crack the glass ceiling that in Britain no longer exists as Doyle, Turner and Osborne have been given the opportunity to display their skill in the saddle at the highest level.