It was the first win—in his very first mount—for apprentice Samuel Payne, son of pioneering jockey Brigid Payne who died quite unexpectedly last January at age 36. As the eldest of 10 children—eight of whom became jockeys, Brigid got her jockey license at age 14, in 1984, and rode 41 winners before retiring at age 18. Her five sisters who became jockeys include: Therese, who rode 450 winners before retiring in 1997 (now a trainer); Maree, who rode about 600 winners before retiring (her husband and she moved to Hong Kong in 2003); and Bernadette, Cathy (married to jockey Kerrin McEvoy) and Michelle who are still riding. Her brother Andrew retired from riding and now trains, while Patrick, who has over 1000 wins, came out of retirement last year to ride jumps. What an interesting family!
Oh, and did I mention…young Samuel Payne is only 15-years-old! Congratulations, young man. Your mum would have been proud.
Pioneering Aussie jockey Brigid Payne, age 17
1 comments:
This is a beautiful article that you have written. Our family of 10 children grew up in Ballarat around the same time as the Payne's and our mother took a shining love for them after their mother tragically passed away when the children were very young. It's wonderful to hear the passion of horse racing continues on throughout the generations.
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