The Cheltenham Festival is one of the major horse racing meetings on the British calendar. It isn’t just one for enthusiasts of the sport to countdown too, though, as the event attracts many people whose interest extends as far as this one, Royal Ascot, and the Grand National. It’s a social event, as much as a sporting one. As such, on the premises you have a wide variety of experienced and inexperienced betters.

Female Jockeys image credit Jeff Griffith unsplash

Female Jockeys image credit Jeff Griffith unsplash

There are those who have never missed a Cheltenham meeting and those who are attending for the first time. It’s likely they’re all wearing tweed and/or a statement hat and from body language alone it’ll be impossible to tell who knows who Frodon is. Not that that really matters. It’s a day to enjoy. Anyone can learn on the fly. Be prepared or not, anyone can learn in a moment. They can represent themselves how they wish, at these events.

Representation

Discussion of representation extends to Ladies Day, a horse racing tradition no matter where the course. Free or discounted tickets were given to women attendees on the Thursday of the Royal Ascot once upon a time when gender ticketing was still a practice. Now, though, it’s more of a celebration – a sort of Galentines. It’s one of fashion and one of glamour. There are Best Dressed prizes, to cap it off. Thankfully, in recent years, there have been progressive steps taken beyond the rails to incorporate women.

Women jockeys are becoming more common after a dismal figure of only five-percent of the riders from 2004 to 2018 were female. Not only that, but they are successful. The likes of Katie Walsh, Nina Carberry, and Hayley Turner in the early 2010s were setting the tone: Walsh won three racing at the Cheltenham Festival, including the Grade 1 Champion Bumper; Carberry, who married Katie’s brother Ted Jr., tying two of Ireland’s leading horse racing families together, rode over 400 victories across her career, including aboard Organised Confusion at the Irish Grand National; Turner won a number of Grade 1 Flat races, both internationally and in the UK. Lizzie Kelly also gets a mention, as the first female rider to win a Grade 1 National Hunt race in 2015.

These women set an example not just for women and young girls who wanted to ride in the big leagues – those who ride in amateur races but want to go pro, those who make up the bulk of the workforce at stables – but also to those who consciously or unconsciously exclude women. Discrimination isn’t a problem for those who suffer because of it – it is not a question for them to answer for themselves. It’s a problem for those who practice or uphold marginalising actions and environments.

Since Walsh, Carberry, and Turner, more women have taken to the tracks and are riding on horses trained and bred by the best in the business. Now, finally given the chance, they are showing what they could have been doing all along. Nicola Currie, the Scottish flat jockey, is showing great promise after her best season in 2018 of 81 winners. Hollie Doyle, a more household name, after her third-placed finish in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award in 2020, had a 2020 Flat season for the history books as she rode 151 winners in a calendar year.

For the Cheltenham Festival this year, we’ll be hoping to see a strong representation of female jockeys beyond the rails. There are a couple you should definitely watch out for, though, and, according to OLBG, the latest betting suggests they are set to compete in the biggest races and for the overall Winning Jockey.

Bryony Frost

Bryony Frost’s name is on the lips of many punters when they’re talking about the Gold Cup. She’ll most likely be on Frodon, the Paul-Nicholls trained gelding. They’re a familiar pair. Frost and Frodon have competed 16 times together, winning eight. Most recently, Boxing Day 2020, they won the King George VI Chase by two-and-a-quarter lengths, which they controlled throughout, despite Frost saying he looked bored before they hit the sand.

The three other notable wins for the pair were the Ryanair Chase (a Grade 1 victory), the Cotswold Chase, and the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup, all at Cheltenham’s Prestbury Park. Frost is excited about the prospect of riding Frodon for Paul Nicholls in the Gold Cup, saying it would be unreal. Al Boum Photo is the favourite but Frodon could still come away with a win with Frost at the reigns.

Frost will appear on other horses throughout the festival too. It’s likely she’ll feature in the handicaps, but also in the Champion Chase aboard Greaneteen (unless this horse races in the Ryanair Chase), the Champion Bumper with Knappers Hill potentially, and Stayers Hurdle on Lil Rockerfeller who hasn’t won for a couple of years but Frost could give him some extra bounce to see him race well.

Rachael Blackmore

Rachael Blackmore is used to applause and will be dreaming of more as she heads to Cheltenham this year. She’s a pioneer in the sport and has already won three races in the Cotswolds on three different horses – Honeysuckle, A Plus Tard, and Minella Indo – who will be present at this year’s festival too.

The Henry-de-Bromhead trained Minella Indo will appear in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. The horse is looking like a good option in the field, along with Frodon. However, A Plus Tard will be there too. It’s unknown on whose back Blackmore will be, with some punters siding with A Plus Tard.

Honeysuckle has short-odds for grabbing Blackmore, another Grade 1 victory during the festival. Which race is yet to be finalised but it looks likely it might be the Champion Hurdle. If Honeysuckle isn’t entered for this race, Blackmore could ride Aspire Tower instead.

Bob Olinger is another horse which could give Blackmore a showing. A relatively recent hopeful in the field, but the horse is among the favourites for the Ballymore’s Novice Hurdle.

As you can see, Blackmore has a variety of options with strong potential for numerous wins. As such, she is among the favourites to come out as top jockey.