According to Paul Ramsay, coordinator for the Jamaica Racing Commission’s (JRC) Jockeys’ Training School, this year’s batch of trainee apprentices will be extremely successful due to the large number of excellent riders who will be recruited.

Female jockeys Joy Haynes and Romae Foster are two of 29 exercise riders chosen by the JRC to undergo a series of training sessions before being approved into the jockeys’ training program, which begins in mid-April.

Those two females will now have the chance to follow in the footsteps of some very talented female riders who have come through the ranks at Caymanas Park. These are Georgina Sergeon (59 winners); Samantha Fletcher (53 winners); Natalie Berger (25 winners); Andree Powell (22 winners); Abigail Able (19 winners); Melissa Ward (18 winners); Azel Cowie-Fung (15 winners); and Tamicka Lawrence (zero wins).

Fletcher, Berger, Powell, and Able are currently active in the sport, while Lawrence has been seen for a while now at the races.

On Wednesday, March 27, these exercise riders were given a chance to demonstrate their skills in what was dubbed the ‘gate test’ which was organised by the JRC, which manages the jockeys’ program, for their operations stewards to make a final assessment of the young riders. The ‘gate test’ was done at the four-furlong (800-metre) marker.

Ramsay stated that the panel is investigating how riders were able to break a race horse from the starting gates, which included posture, stirrup length, balance, and coordination, among other factors. He also claimed that they will examine each individual further and assign them a grade based on those factors.

“Based on what I saw, I just identified some very talented individuals. I can say this as much,” Ramsay told the Jamaica Observer’s The Supreme Racing Guide shortly after the gate test was completed.

“When I look at these guys, they have been in the system for quite a while, and I am so happy the JRC now decides to really start the programme for 2024. We are the regulator, and we are responsible for producing licensed jockeys. We have to make sure that 2024 is the year to capture the talent.

“They have been waiting for quite some time, and we are making sure that this is the year for them. What I am seeing here is just talent,” he further said.

The riders’ initial step of training was an interview, which included a weight test and a practical riding test on a mechanical horse. The second step was the literary exam, which was administered on Thursday, March 21, and the third was the ‘gate test’. Ramsay indicated that a minimum of 25 people will be chosen for enrollment based on the results of all three exams and the overall scores for each rider.

“We would have loved to do all 29 or even round it off to 30, but it is also based on the commission’s approval as they have the last say,” he said.

Haynes stated that she felt good about herself and was convinced that she had done the necessary training to become a racing jockey.

“I feel very good about the gate test. I felt that I had done well. The horse that I rode wasn’t that quick out of the starting gates, but I handled myself well and believe that I will move forward.

“Beside loving the sport, I had lost a brother when I was eight years old who had loved horse racing so much, and so for me being here, I think I am close to him again. It will be a dream come true for me if I am selected to go to the school.

“Big up, Tensang Chung, who had taught everything about riding. Also, thanks to trainer Rowan Mathie, who gave me the first gate work,” the 27-year-old Haynes said.

Foster, the sister of the well-known Orlando and Tevin, remarked that being accepted into the Jockeys’ School would mean everything to her.

“It feels very good to be another Foster. That is the game. I have fixed feelings today, as shortly after leaving the starting gates, my foot came out of the irons, but I felt great within myself because I recovered well.

“The female jockeys are doing so well out there, and to be a part of it would be a dream for me. It would be very huge for me,” Foster said.