is this the carberry/walsh legacy?

​As good as they are as jockeys, Rachel Blackmore, Bryony Frost and even Hollie Doyle in some respects, owe a massive deed of gratitude for their opportunity to shine on the big stage to the great Irish amateur jockeys Nina Carberry and Katie Walsh, two people who in their self-effacing way helped to smash the glass ceiling with the warning ‘no female can go any higher’ etched deep into its surface.
It was not a race either Carberry or Walsh won, I believe, not even the Irish Nationals both have on their c.v.’s, that weakened the integrity of that glass ceiling but the day punters backed Seabass and Katie Walsh into favourite for the Grand National. Here was universal confirmation that having a female on a horse was no impediment to its chances, even in the most famous horse-race in the world.
Of course, it no doubt paved the way at the beginning of their careers that both Nina and Katie are members of two of the most decorated and famous racing families in Ireland, not that the blessing of being a Carberry or a Walsh would take them far if they had not married their talent to commitment and hard work. Both were rewarded with races won at the Cheltenham Festival, both were sought-after by trainers both sides of the Irish Sea when they had a runner in one of the amateur races they considered had more than a good chance of winning. To have Carberry or Walsh booked prior to the Tuesday of the Festival was all that was needed for the odds to shorten and to catch the eye of top tipsters.
Between them they changed the mind-set of owners and trainers. Certainly J.P. McManus was never slow to put either of them on his horses, even at the Festival, and if he is not a man to suffer fools or to risk his cash unwisely. I rather suspect, as with the rest of us, he was saddened by their retirements and, though Rachel Blackmore has emerged in the paid ranks to grab the headlines, no female amateur has appeared on the scene to continue the legacy they established.
In changing the course of racing history, it must be remembered that as talented as Nina Carberry undoubtedly was, she declined to turn professional as she did not think she would be successful and that greater opportunities would come her way if she stayed amateur. Yet, along with Katie, she had cast her dye, cracked open the glass ceiling and broke down the barrier that prevented female jockey being seen as the equal of the men. It is because of their achievements that no eyelids are battered when the name Blackmore, Frost or Doyle appears next to a favourite, even in the biggest and most important of races. And they are not alone. It is not just the Blackmore, Frost and Doyle show; in Britain there is Pinchin, Worsley, Fuller and Wonnacott who never harm a favourite’s chance, and other female jockeys who win on a regular basis, though it is not exactly the same in Ireland where a female outside of Blackmore riding a winner remains a bit of a novelty.
All that said, to my utter astonishment and dismay, there seems to be a pushback against the success and popularity of Bryony Frost by her male colleagues. Never did I suspect Bryony might cause a divide in the sport. Do the belittlers and backbiters not realise the benefit that her openness and honest approach brings to the sport; that she is quite probably the greatest communicator this sport has ever had; that she reaches beyond the lens of the camera into the imagination of children who sit with their parents in front of the t.v. screen? 
Whether we care for it or not, whether we poke fun at the ‘woke society’ or believe it to be the making of modern mankind, we no longer exist in sexist times. The mantra of ‘what goes on the weighing room should stay in the weighing room’ belongs to a time that has had its day. Female jockeys face the same dangers as their male colleagues, if they are not treated with respect both in and out of the weighing room, it cheapens the sport and brings it into disrepute. That Bryony has the strength of character to bring this matter into the glare of publicity demonstrates a greater concern for the image of the sport than those who believe the weighing room sits outside of the law of the land and the changing of society and morality.
It is shameful that the legacy of Nina Carberry and Katie Walsh should be seen to be violated by male colleagues green with envy at the success and popularity of one of their own kind. I just hope that Blackmore, Doyle and others do not have similar tales to tell as ‘Frosty’ has had to endure.