On August 9, Melbourne Cup winning jockey Robbie Dolan will have the pleasure and privilege of taking part in the Shergar Cup at Ascot in England.
An annual event, the Shergar Cup is a team competition for jockeys spread over a six-race card featuring prize money of 500 000 pounds.
Irish born Dolan will represent the Great Britain and Ireland team, along with the team captain Holly Doyle, who recently conquered new heights when she broke the record for the most winners in Britain by a female jockey, a record previously held by Hayley Turner.
“A week after the Melbourne Cup I spoke to Nick Luck (from Racing TV in the UK). He asked me if I would be interested in doing it (the Shergar Cup),” said Dolan.
“I said, yeah, absolutely … and it just went from there. I received a couple of emails saying I was in the mix sort of thing … and then later they said it was going to be announced, and it was announced last week.
“It’s a cool event to be part of and it is an honour to be invited to do it.
“I think racing … look, it is one of those games where, if you can ride a horse, you can find a job anywhere in the world, but it can definitely also tie you down to one place for a very long period of time, so it is an honour to get the opportunity to ride overseas, particularly at such a famous track like Royal Ascot.
“I haven’t ridden in the UK since 2016. It is going to be great to get back to ride there … and then I’ll duck home to Ireland for a couple of weeks to see my family,” continued Dolan.
“It is such a far, far away from home that if you get the opportunity to get so close to home you must go back and see your family and friends … you have to … so it’s all going be a great trip all around.”
The very makeup of the Great Britain and Ireland team underlines a change in format for the Shergar Cup which has previously fielded and all-ladies team who, interestingly enough, emerged victorious in four of the last six editions of the Shergar Cup.
“We feel now is the time to move away from a Ladies only team, and this new evolution of the format keeps the event fresh,” said Nick Smith, Director of Racing and Public Affairs at Ascot Racecourse.
Holly Doyle endorsed the change.
“The Ladies team over the years has had great success, but the new changes that have been made which include integrating the male and female jockeys on the same team, is a nice reminder that we as jockeys complete on a level playing field internationally,” said Doyle.
And Dolan endorsed Holly Doyle as team captain.
“So she should be,” said Dolan emphatically. “She deserves it.
“You only have to look at her feat of becoming the most winning female jockey in UK racing … that is such a huge feat in itself, apart from everything else she has achieved.
“The acknowledgement that jockeys all complete on a level playing field is a nice touch.”
The post Melbourne Cup win period for Dolan over the last six months has been a busy and varied one.
“It’s been good. It’s been busy. I’ve been riding as much as I can,” said Dolan.
“You do have a responsibility winning a race like the Melbourne Cup to show up for events … and as many charity events as you can and represent the racing industry in general because the Melbourne Cup is the race that represents racing in Australia.
‘I definitely have taken on that responsibility, and I have enjoyed playing a part in representing the racing industry away from the track.”
And now Dolan … never mind the team name … will soon be representing Australia, in a manner of speaking at least, in the Ascot extravaganza on August 9 which is formally billed as the Shergar Cup And Concert, with a feast of music entertaining race goers once the race action has finished.
It should be quite a day out for our latest Melbourne Cup winning rider.
