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The unexpected retirement of Group One winning jockey Nikita Beriman comes at a time when the impact female riders are making on Australian racing has never been stronger.
Beriman, 33, is retiring to Queensland after having her Victorian career severely hindered in recent years by hip injuries.
"I've achieved everything I've wanted to and it was my choice to retire," Berriman announced.
"I could have had surgery and tried to come back but decided I was ready for the next challenge.
Beriman is moving to Caloundra in Queensland to be closer to her family.
Beriman retires just five short of 700 career wins headlined by her history-making feat in being the first female jockey to win a G1 race in Victoria in the 2007 Emirates Stakes at Flemington on Tears I Cry.
Ironically Beriman announced her retirement on a weekend when three star female riders Jamie Kah, Raquel Clark and Jade McNaught made headlines at Flemington and Ascot in Perth.
Record-breaker Kah, making big inroads following her move to Victoria after dominating the Adelaide premiership, landed the G1 Makybe Diva Stakes at Flemington on the upset winner Gatting.
Clark, who has taken over from Kah as Adelaide's reigning champion rider, landed the G2 Danehill Stakes on Dalasan on her first day of riding at Flemington while Perth sensation Jade McNaught won six of the nine races at Ascot on Saturday.
It was a history-making feat by McNaught as she is the first apprentice to ride six winners at a Perth race meeting, previously achieved only twice by two champion senior jockeys in Frank Treen and William Pike.
McNaught's six wins included her first black type victory on Neurological in the Listed Farnley Stakes. She is now leading the WA riding premiership with 25 wins, five more than perennial champion William Pike.
Not to be outdone Kathy O'Hara flew the flag for the Sydney girls at Rosehill with her win aboard Spanish Dream, a bitter sweet result as she is facing a three months suspension for mobile phone misdemeanors during race meetings.
With Linda Meech crowned the leading rider in Victoria last season with 134 wins and again out to an early lead for this season's title, the influence of female riders is at an all-time high.
Meech, a go to rider for many top stables in Victoria, added another feature win to her record on Saturday when she won the G2 Bobbie Lewis Quality at Flemington on Zoutori.
Last season's national premiership table saw Meech, Clark and Kah finish among the nation's six leading riders by wins with each riding more than 130 winners.
In NSW and the ACT Rachel King, Kathy O'Hara, Kayla Nisbet, Wendy Peel, Jess Taylor and Courtney Gravener all figured prominently across city, provincial and country premierships while already a new wave led by Ceejay Graham, Louise Day, Sam Clenton, Mikayla Weir, Brooke Stower, Belinda Hodder and Yvette Lewis are coming through this season.
There are more than 50 female riders registered in NSW with girl apprentices clearly outnumbering the boys.
In Queensland there is also no shortage of talented female riders – Stephanie Thornton, Tegan Harrison, Chelsea Jokic, Bonnie Thomson, Emma Ljung, Elyce Smith and Skye Bogenhuber among the most popular - where the size of the state sees many girls happy to ride in widespread country areas away from Brisbane and the south east corner.
