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| Staff Writer |
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The first three jockeys in the 2022 stc International Jockeys Challenge have been announced, with recently retired Australian superstar Glen Boss climbing back into the saddle to compete in the four-race competition.
Last year’s winner Shane Foley returns to defend his crown and Hayley Turner, the first female jockey in Britain to ride 100 winners in a calendar year, will also take her place in the line-up of seven female and seven male riders.
Boss (52), best known for winning three straight Melbourne Cups with Makybe Diva, as well as an astonishing 90 Group 1s in a glittering career, is looking forward to his return to race riding:
Foley (33) won this year’s stc International Jockeys Challenge and as the reigning champion is invited back to compete again.
The prize money is brilliant, and you just have to see the list of jockeys that go out there to gauge how important it is for us. It’s nice to be competing alongside them all and the likes of Saudi, Dubai and Bahrain are the places we need to be during the winter.
Turner (38) is one of Britain’s most successful female jockeys and is also excited about the challenge, especially as she’s had a spell on the sidelines after breaking her thumb.
The stc International Jockeys Challenge features four handicap races being run for $400,000 each, with a further $100,000 prize fund for the challenge itself.
This year one race over 1200m will be run on turf for the first time and all races will consist of 14 runners and five reserves, with all 14 jockeys riding in each race.
The jockeys are made up of seven international female riders, five international men and two local men with the jockeys receiving 15% of prize money won.