Several prominent female riders in the UK spoke out against the French authorities when they introduced an allowance for female jockeys in 2017 and the British said they had no intention to follow suit at that time.
But the experiment has proved a success with he proportion of rides taken by women across all French races rising from 5.92 per cent in 2016 to 15.72 per cent. The proportion of wins from 4.63 per cent to 14.8 per cent and the total strike rate of female jockeys from 6.84 per cent to 9.03 per cent. The male equivalent of the latter is 9.78 per cent.
Opinion in the UK may now be changing and while the sport’s top lady jockeys still resent the implication that they can not match, pound-for-pound, their male counterparts, a change in rules could be welcomed if it increases the revenue of those affected.
Not that the Girls team in the Shergar Cup has needed any help in recent years!
Shergar Cup – The Rules
The annual jockey’ team competition, held at Ascot since 2000 (apart from one year) has seen the Girls team successful in two of the last four years.
Each jockey rides in five races, and each team has either two or three members riding in any given race. Over the six races so all teams have an equal number of races on the day.
The team with the highest points is the winner, with points for the first five places. If a horse does not run and cannot be replaced with a reserve, the jockey who is unable to ride is awarded 4 points for the race in question. At the end of the day, the Silver Saddle and a cash prize is given to the individual jockey with the most points.
Previous Shergar Cup Winners Last 10 Years
| Year | Winning team | Points | Captain | Silver Saddle winner | Points |
|---|
| 2009 | Ireland | 101 | Richard Hughes | Richard Hughes (IRE) | 49 |
| 2010 | Ireland | 80 | Richard Hughes | Fran Berry (IRE) | 35 |
| 2011 | Ireland | 80 | Richard Hughes | Paul Hanagan (GB) | 35 |
| 2012 | Rest of the World | 89 | Yutaka Take | Matthew Chadwick (ROW) | 45 |
| 2013 | Europe | 97 | Gérald Mossé | Gérald Mossé (EUR) | 46 |
| 2014 | Europe | 69 | Frankie Dettori | Olivier Peslier (EUR) | 42 |
| 2015 | Girls | 69 | Emma-Jayne Wilson | Sammy Jo Bell (GIRLS) | 42 |
| 2016 | Rest of the World | 68 | Silvestre de Sousa | Thierry Jarnet (EUR) | 38 |
| 2017 | GB and Ireland | 86 | Jamie Spencer | Fran Berry (GB&IRE) | 37 |
| 2018 | Girls | 76 | Josephine Gordon | Hayley Turner (GIRLS) | 39 |
The 2019 Shergar Cup Teams
Girls
Hayley Turner, the most successful female jockey in Britain will be joined by Jamie Kah, who recently set a new record for the most wins by a female rider in an Australian season, and Women Jockeys’ World Cup winner, Nanako Fujita.
GB & Ireland
Tadhg O’Shea, hugely successful in the UAE, teams up with Danny Tudhope, who had a tremendous Royal Ascot this year and is challenging for the Flat Jockey’s Championship. Jamie Spencer is a veteran of the weighing room but won the Irish 2,000 Guineas this year and also the Silver Saddle in 2017.
Rest of the World
Captained by Yuga Kawada – one of only eight riders in JRA history to win all five Classic races in Japan, the Rest of the World team also features Hong Kong’s Vincent Chak-Yiu Ho and Australian Mark Zahra.
Europe
Four-time German champion jockey Filip Minarik (c) leads the European team and is partnered by UK-based French jockey Gerard Mosse, another former Silver Saddle winner, and Dutchman Adrie de Vries.
Shergar Cup Outright Betting – The Verdict
While acknowledging that it may be sounding repetitive, the Girls’ team looks strong again.
Priced up at 11/4 by William Hill, NANAKO FUJITA‘s 3lb allowance is a big plus in the competition and the draw for horses appears to have been kind to the Girls. Hayley Turner can lift the trophy again
Fujita, the only female jockey to be licensed in Japan, is also fairly priced at 9/1 to win the Silver Saddle but, in the same market, I’d have a saver on Europe’s FILIP MINARIK. Great Britain and Ireland will be disappointed with the draw and I can’t understand why they are favourites in most lists.
In the races themselves, we’re liking the look of the tough FOOLAAD in the opening Dash at an each-way 12/1.
WHAT A WELCOME is only 3lb higher than when scoring over the course and distance of the Stayers in October of last year and is a tempting 7/1 with Ladbrokes.
PASS THE VINO, much improved lately, can reverse Newmarket running with Kinks and is 5/1 with Ladbrokes in the Sprint.
Shergar Cup 2019 William Hill Silver Saddle Odds
Jamie Spencer 4/1
Hayley Turner 9/2
Tadgh O’Shea 6/1
Danny Tudhope 7/1
Gerald Mosse 8/1
Nanako Fujita 9/1
Filip Minarik 10/1
Mark Zahra, Adrie de Vries and Yuga Kawada 12/1
Vincent Chak-Yiu Ho 14/1
Jamie Shah 16/1
(Odds correct at 10.00am August 9)
