3 minute read

It has been a much-talked about target for female riders at Royal Ascot - to ride a winner at the Royal Meeting and so break the winning drought for females riders since Gay Kelleway's success on Sprowston Boy in 1987.

Hayley Turner brought that void to an end on the 33/1 chance and Charlie Fellowes-trained Thanks Be by just a neck from The Queen's Magnetic Charm.

"She was a little bit keen but the strong mile suited her," said Turner. "She settled really well and I was able to tack over from the outside draw and get in amongst them. She just cruised through them.

"I had a nice, light weight. I didn't have breakfast, lunch and dinner but it was worth it! I had a sweat here at the races too.

"It's a great performance from Charlie as well. Weirdly, even though she was big price, he was quite confident this morning. He said that everything was perfect for her - the big field, the strong pace, the ground - and she was not without a chance.

"It means quite a lot because, though we all love Royal Ascot, we have to listen to Gay every year - fair play to her, but I can take those bragging rights off her now! Well done to her because it is a great achievement and it was nice to have to have that goal to aim for as well.

"Hopefully, the standard of girls has risen so much that they will just keep coming and coming now. I think it will be more common now and I think in 10 years the girls will be having winners more often here, it won't be something discussed."

Turner announced her retirement in November 2015, and spent some time as an ITV presenter, but the lure back to riding was too strong and has been back full-time riding again since 2018.

"I think I needed the break to recharge," she explained. "I have come back keener than ever and am enjoying it more than ever. It is going so well this year, I have got a lot of new support as well as old support, I love my job - I enjoy it so much. 

"I just recently started riding out for Charlie Fellowes, I know him quite well as he was assistant to James Fanshawe, and I rode out for him a lot. I know how Charlie likes his horses ridden and he trains in a very similar way to James as well. We do get on quite well.

"I went into the weighing room today and there are five girls there. We know each other really well as we are racing every day and the standard of girls jockeys has risen so much. We all get on so well, Hollie and Josephine waited to congratulate me as we pulled up today. We all wanted one of us to have a winner - it is nice that it was me!
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"I was going to keep on trying - if it hadn't been this year I was going to try next year. I have been second in the Albany and third in one of the handicaps so I've been knocking on the door before."

Turner was the first female jockey to ride a 100 winners in Britain (2008) and has also ridden two Group 1 winners and one Grade 1 winner - in 2011 on Dream Ahead in the July Cup and Margot Did in the Nunthorpe Stakes, and on I'm A Dreamer in the Beverly D. Stakes in 2012.

While she was keen for any girl to have been successful winner this week, she admitted that she did want it to be her!

And despite those Group 1 wins, this Royal Ascot victory is a career highlight. 

"Royal Ascot is different class! I have have had winners all over the world and it is a buzz, but Royal Ascot is so unique, it has so much history and has done for years and will continue to do so - just to be part of it is wonderful! I feel bad for beating Her Majesty, but I am sure she will understand!"

Trained by Charlie Fellowes, registering his first Royal Ascot success, the three-year-old daughter of Mukhadram came from the rear with a strong run to lead inside the final furlong of the straight mile contest to defeat her Majesty The Queen's Magnetic Charm (7/1), the top-weight, by a neck.

Fellowes, who is now based at Bedford Lodge Stables in Newmarket [which used to be owned by Luca Cumani] said: "First and foremost, I am so happy for these owners. Tom Wilson, who owns the horse and is Emma's [Capon] father, lost his mother last week. They have had a really rough year and they deserve this so much. "The guys at home all work so, so hard, so I hope this goes a small to putting a smile on his face.

"Thanks Be is wonderful. I just felt like today would really suit her. I am so happy for the owners and delighted for the yard. They work so hard and without them I am nothing. To get a winner on the big stage like this means so much.

"What Hayley has done for this sport is phenomenal. She is the best female jockey that has ever ridden. Hayley rang me up two weeks ago and said can I come and ride out for you two days a week. She had ridden a winner for me at Newmarket earlier in the year, so I said good idea. It is purely because of that that she picked up this ride.

"We have always got on well and she has ridden for me a bit. She wanted to come and ride out regularly - two or three days a week - and I said let's do that. The ride on Thanks Be came purely though that because there are not many people that can do 8st and she rode her beautifully. Hayley is a very good rider and I am so pleased for her."

"Thanks Be didn't stay last time out and I really felt that a big-field would really enable her to settle and get into a rhythm, so this race looked beforehand as if it would suit.

"Did I think she would win a Sandringham? No I didn't. But I did think she would run well and that conditions would really suit her. It's very special to have a winner at Royal Ascot. The main feeling is relief if I'm honest. We've hit the post a few times in big races and I was starting to think after King Ottokar got no luck in the Hampton Court Stakes yesterday that every time we go for a big race, is luck not going to come our way? But thankfully today it did.

"I thought the race would really suit her. When I saw the rain, I was delighted - I had three runners this week and all wanted cut in the ground. Then we got drawn on the other side and everything was winning this side. 

"Then I didn't think Mr Haggas was going to declare The Queen's horse, I thought they were going to go for the Coronation, so, instead of running off our real weight, we ran out of the weights. I thought everything had gone against us.

"They all came in the middle, we got a lovely position and she just travelled through the race beautifully. Hayley gave her the most lovely ride - she let the filly find her feet - and the rest is history, I guess.

"She has a very good pedigree and is a really good-looking filly, so the next plan will be trying to get some black type with her."