Hollie Doyle: The Rise of a Champion Jockey in Horse Racing

There's no getting around it: Doyle's first advantage is the fact that she became one of the few trail-blazing women successful in the sport of racing in the first place. From the age of 18, she has patiently rid herself of the right of her claim and then improved to match the skill it takes to keep up in mainstream UK races, probably to the delight of many onlookers. But this was only the beginning!

What happened next? Quite simply, she improved her racing skills year by year and then began winning more lot of races. No, Hollie hangs in there right at the very top, with all the other boys. In doing so, she became the first woman jockey to ride in more than 100 races in a calendar year, a task that takes a thirst for competition matched by less than the top 10% of competitive women in this country.

Still, I don't suppose there's anything extraordinary about this, either. Except, of course, throw in Doyle's many performances at various prestigious tracks, Ascot & Newmarket among them, and then at the age of 90, various grandchildren is bound to follow suit in their basically chosen horse sports professions and see, again, and again, and again—as they grow up and into them—the same face of gun-toting, barrier-breaking old Grannie Doyle laughing all over again. Against a backdrop of all the macho cowboys running in all the nation(s) throughout this crazy old-world monarchy, they are all bound to come out of this mess singing... "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun! Same as the Old Guys!".

Who is Hollie Doyle?

Hollie Doyle was born on 11 April 1997 in Hereford, England. Her family loved horse racing, and being in the countryside, she was around horses a lot. From a young age, she was drawn to the horse racing world, and at 16, she started her career as a jockey. Her sheer will and commitment to learn was evident then. She was to become a very rare pearl indeed – and widely considered a national treasure in the horse racing community.

The path to her success was hard-fought – no surprises there. It’s a male-dominated sport where often people just don't see women as jockeys – let alone champion jockeys. She made history in 2019 when she became the first female jockey in British horse racing history to ride five winners in one day.

Many young girls, and hopefully boys, can see that Hollie Doyle blew all preconceived biases out of the water. A woman can't be a top jockey? Come on! A woman can't ride Group race or Grade 1 winners? Please, you're living in the past!

Hollie Doyle is the beacon that is telling young girls that, as long as you love horse racing and are completely committed to learning, you can make your way in this world. Who knows, you might well become the next Hollie Doyle?

Key Achievements in Horse Racing

She was the first female jockey to win a Group 1 race in the UK, a fantastic achievement in the sport of horse racing. This secures her position as one of the best athletes of her generation for us, and hopefully as a guiding light for future generations of female sports participants. The key point here isn't that something unfair in the sport was highlighted and eradicated. She has simply beaten back thousands of other exceptional jockeys in the most competitive turf horse racing milieu in the World.

Horse racing is a performance-based sport where statistics can define success for athletes. The daily performance levels she achieves via win rates and profits are exceptional. Her Group/high-performance statistics, particularly her strike and win rates in the US, are remarkable; she is well subsidized via outside work; she is talented; and, to reiterate, she is the first third gender jockey to come out. This appears to be neither a scandal nor a shock per se; all three of the last points are well-known "givens," worthy of a medium build at most. Shouldn't those credentials directly imply being well-subbed?

Common Tracks Where Hollie Doyle Excels

There's one racecourse steeped in history for her. For its famously uneven ground, the prestige of the Epsom Derby, and the many great victories she's taken there, Epsom Downs is like a barracks, glorifying her name with the very greatest. The way the air feels just a little tighter on Derby Day, closer up, and buzzing on a phone. Actually, not exactly. Not a hall would make it obligatory; more a promenade, where a milestone treads through milestones.

Then there's the other course. The place that, rather than beneath the feet getting at her a bit, consists of a cluster of related structures, with fixed boundaries, and developed within a common scheme. On a geology that, at its viewable diameter (of roughly 100 miles), provides the necessary contrast. For all of those striking mannequin poses, she's had up against that wall to get out the gate. Ascot Racecourse is an arena (one among multiple)—it's a site for taking a real horse to the show. The Derby and "Royal Ascot" are Epsom and Ascot. Ascot and Epsom are their racecourses. Situated, situated, belonging, kept. See?

The Impact of Hollie Doyle on Horse Racing

She has not just kicked down the door for all women with her amazing success, but in the process, has emphatically eliminated the public’s and quite possibly, other riders’ concerns about the abilities of women in what had been—up until her timely arrival—a traditionally male-dominated sport. She is seen as a no-nonsense rider who absolutely competes on all levels and has turned this perception into a huge positive that has girls and teenaged young women already interested in the sport of horse racing, aspiring to be her.

She has suddenly gained the responsibility of role model. She has already taken that role to great heights with public speaking tours, extremely frank discussions about her success and how she responds to challenges, and has taken steps to put her own experiences into perspective and is sharing those experiences with young women and other riders in the sport.

I had an interesting chat with [a friend of mine] who is working to bring a program to the sport of horse racing that creates youth-friendly admission for jockeys because the need is still significant to bring in young women to the sport. As they pursue their dreams on equal footing, this initiative will allow young women to freely participate in the sport amongst a backdrop of initiatives designed to offset their costs and provide her with the training, skills, knowledge, and resources—for three years—that she will need, to establish herself as an all-around rider with a complete skill set.

Everything about Hollie Doyle screams that she’s not just a great female jockey. She’s a great jockey full-stop. Iconic Victories, prestigious winners…she’s got them in abundance. But it’s what Hollie Doyle brings to the world of horse racing in terms of her credibility as a standout jockey that makes her a champion in her own right

In a traditional, men-only sport, Doyle has reached milestones that no one else ever had in the horse racing industry – not only making her a sporting giant but a world icon in the betting industry too. Progressive is the ponytailed jockey who looks like butter wouldn’t melt. In her wake, future potential Hollie Doyle(s) can now see the road to success - whatever the weather. Gender-agnostic to gender-equality.

Winning, as she does, creates super-fandom out of horse racing fanatics and the hoi polloi. She, like all great horses, runs like fuck to win. Or in her style, showjumping. And that’s what it takes to be successful in horse racing for a female. Female fan or male fan, seeing her at the top of the mountain is nice. It's warming…it’s like dreaming of world peace, then waking up and forgetting the best bit. Hoping one day, if she’s as brilliant as she is, she can go the whole ten yards.

Covered in muddy and salty winter ground soil, bigger, stonger, and dominant. It's nice that she’s a girl - flying the flag for all of the other women who will look to follow her. Who doesn’t like to see Hollie Doyle smiling, happy and full of cheer for her fans on live TV?

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