Are There Any Female Jockeys? (Or Is It All Men?)

One of my friends is an avid fan of horse racing.

She loves watching (and betting on) races all across the world.

She often tells stories about growing up around horse racing, since her parents were also avid horse racing fans.

Her entire family has rode horses recreationally for most of their lives.

She once told me that she had dreams of becoming a jockey one day, but her family couldn’t afford to put her through the training and junior-level competitions necessary to make it in such an expensive and difficult sport.

Ever since she told me this, I can’t help but think: How many female jockeys are there?

Since I’ve met her, I have watched many horse races with her — but I rarely, if ever, see any women riding the horses.

The answer is that there are absolutely female jockeys! However, there weren’t always. It was a long and hard fought road to get women on the racetrack alongside men. In recent years, women have finally begun to rise up and make a name for themselves in the sport of horse racing.

I decided to do some research about women in jockeying. I figured that, as with many other industries, women were likely not completely equal in horse racing.

As it turns out, I was right (sort of).

Today I’d like to present my findings and answer the question: “Are there any female jockeys?”

 

Who were some of the first female jockeys?

The answer to this question, of course, varies by country.

The first woman to ride in a professional horse race in the United States was Diane Crump.

She first competed on February 7, 1969, riding a horse named Bridle ‘n Bit at Hialeah Park Race Track in Florida.

She reportedly needed a police escort onto the track because there was still so much hostility toward women competing in the sport.

Nevertheless, she persisted.

She continued to compete at the professional level and, eventually, became the first woman to compete in the Kentucky Derby in 1970.

She officially retired from racing in 1999 with over 230 wins.

In England, Meriel Patricia Tufnell became the first female jockey to win a race under Jockey Club rules.

She rode her mother’s horse, named Scorched Earth, to victory in the Goya Stakes in 1972 — the first ever ladies’ flat race held under Jockey Club rules.

She continued to ride competitively until 1974 and also founded the Lady Jockeys’ Association of Great Britain.

After retiring from racing, she opened an equestrian yard and became an instructor.

 

Are there an equal number of men and women in horse racing?

As with many other industries, the answer is unfortunately no.

However, jockeying does show quite a bit of promise when it comes to equity among men and women in the sport.

It is one of the only major professional sports where female and male athletes directly compete on a regular basis.

A recent study published in the Journal of Sports Economics suggests that female jockeys are still underrepresented at an aggregate level.

They are also marginalized when looking at the number of races they participated in.

Only six percent of all professional rides that were examined featured a female jockey.

At the highest levels of Thoroughbred racing, female jockeys rode horses only about three percent of the time.

“It seems clear that female jockeys early in their career may have trouble being awarded equal opportunities to demonstrate skills at winning races,” the researchers wrote in their findings.

“Without opportunities to win races in the beginning, female jockeys cannot easily access the incentive system which rewards jockey success with opportunities for more success.”

Based on studies like this one, it is clear that there is still much work to be done when it comes to representation of women in horse racing.

According to The Jockey Guild, the union that represents more than 95 percent of all North American jockeys, only 81 of its 994 members are women.

This means that women make up just over 8 percent of the member body.

A Jockey Guild official recently said that percentage has not changed significantly for more than a decade.

 

How many women have competed in the Kentucky Derby?

 Since Diane Crump competed in the Kentucky Derby 50 years ago, only five other women have rode horses in the race — which is widely considered the most important Thoroughbred race in the United States.

None of the female jockeys who have competed in that time period have finished the race higher than 5th place.

The other female jockeys who have competed in The Kentucky Derby are: Patti Cooksey, Andrea Seefeldt, Julie Krone, Rosemary Homeister and Rosie Napravnik.

Unfortunately, in the 147 year history of the Kentucky Derby, no female trainer has ever won it.

 

Who are some other notable female jockeys?

Julie Krone is possibly the most successful female jockey in America.

She made her professional racing debut in 1981 at Tampa Bay Downs in Florida, riding a horse named Tiny Star.

In 1993, Krone became the first and only female jockey to win the prestigious Belmont Stakes — part of the Triple Crown.

She has also won races including Gulfstream Park, Monmouth Park, The Meadowlands, and Atlantic City Race Course.

She was also the first female jockey to be inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.

Michelle Payne is an Australian jockey who competed in her first professional race at just 15 years old.

After suffering a serious fall during a race that left her with a fractured skull and bruised brain when she was 18 years old, she was able to recover and continue her professional racing career.

She is the first woman to win the Melbourne Cup and is also currently the only person in Victoria to hold a dual trainer/jockey license — having trained over 30 other race winners.

Rachael Blackmore, an Irish jockey, began competing as an amateur jockey while she was in college studying equine science.

She won her first Grade 1 race in April 2019 at the Mares Novice Hurdle Championship Final aboard Honeysuckle.

In 2021, Blackmore became the first female jockey to win the Grand National, winning the race aboard Minella Times.

Hayley Turner is thought to be the most successful female jockey in the United Kingdom in flat racing.

She began her professional racing career in 2000.

Her most notable wins include the July Cup and Nunthorpe Stakes.

Turner is also the first woman to ever win 100 U.K. Flat races during a single calendar year.

So far, she has won more than 860 starts.

As of 2021, she is still racing!

 

Has a female jockey ever won the Triple Crown?

No, a female jockey has never won all three jewels of the Triple Crown.

In 1993, Julie Krone — who was discussed more above — became the first (and so far only) female jockey to win any of the three Triple Crown races after winning the Belmont Stakes aboard her horse Colonial Affair.

In fact, few female jockeys have ever competed in all three races that would make them eligible for the Triple Crown. Rosie Napravnik became the first female jockey to ride in all three races in 2013.

As you can see, there is still a ton of progress to be made for female jockeys in the sport of horse racing.

The sport is incredibly significant because it remains one of the only professional sports where men and women compete directly against one another, which means that many people across the world have their eyes on how gender equality in horse racing is evolving.

In recent years, the industry has made significant strides toward making sure that men and women have equal opportunity on the track — even at the highest levels of the sport. Hopefully, with a bit more work, the sport of horse racing can continue to bridge the gap between male and female jockeys.