Female Jockeys Start Cracking the Whip

When former champion jockey Warren Kennedy was back in Durban recently, he got a few phone calls from local trainers asking about the possibility of recruiting a female jockey or two from New Zealand, where he is now No 1.

- Mike Moon

The interest in women is because of the 1.5kg allowance that all female riders get in this country – a measure introduced a while ago to encourage more women into the game.

South Africa's sole female fully fledged jockey, Rachel Venniker, has been among the top 10 riders in the country in the past two years, is very good at her job and certainly doesn't need that 1.5kg to compete with men.

But she is happy to take it – just one of the reasons her services are in heavy demand and why Kiwi ladies might fancy a stint here.