History was made in this year’s Melbourne Cup when Prince of Penzance jockey Michelle Payne became the first ever woman to win Australia’s biggest race. She followed it up with a stunning serve to the racing industry and an impassioned plea for greater equality in a sport overwhelmingly dominated by men.
The horse she rode to victory was a 101/1 rank outsider to take out the Cup but had a stunning finish to beat Max Dynamite (2nd) and Criterion (3rd).
However arguably the most significant story to come out of the race was Payne’s triumph.
“It’s like a dream come true, this horse is awesome,” Payne said after the race.
“What he has been through, unbelievable training to get him here like this today.
“This is everybody’s dream as a jockey in Australia and now probably the world.”
Quietly optimistic about Prince of Penzance’s chances before the race, Payne expertly rode the six-year-old gelding to a defining win.
“From the 1000 (metres) everything just opened up,” she said.
“I got onto the back of Trip To Paris, he took me into the race.
“I was actually clipping his heels, I was going that good but I didn’t want to check him and then he just got into the straight and burst clear and it was unreal.”
Payne criticised the “chauvinistic” racing industry in her post-race interview and thanked Ed Dunlop and the horse’s owners for showing faith in her.
She followed this up with passionate and inspiring words demanding equal treatment for women in sport.
“And I want to say to everyone else, get stuffed, because women can do anything and we can beat the world.
I would like to say that, you know, it’s a very male-dominated sport and people think we are not strong enough and all of the rest of it, blah-blah blah, you know what, it’s not all about strength, there is so much more involved, getting the horse into a rhythm, getting the horse to try for you, it’s being patient and I’m so glad to win Melbourne Cup and hopefully, it will help female jockeys from now on to get more of a go.”
In 438 starts, she has an impressive record of 51 wins and a place rate of 33%.
The touching story continues with Payne’s brother Stevie, who suffers from Down syndrome, is a strapper in Darren Weir’s stable and breaking down stereotypes of disabled people in sport.
Michelle and Stevie live together and will surely cherish this day for the rest of their lives.
Great win Prince of Penzance and great ride Michelle Payne first woman jockey to win the #MelbourneCup! pic.twitter.com/hPxDA8hRX5
— Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) November 3, 2015
More 2015 Melbourne Cup:
>> 2015 Melbourne Cup: Who won, came last
>> Full finishing order
>> Full report on Red Cadeaux
>> Melbourne Cup live blog
>> Melbourne Cup winners and losers
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