Questionnaire: Gay Kellaway - Racehorse Trainer
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Your support makes all the difference.What is the best horse you've ever trained?
Soviet Bureau. I thought he was awesome, winning on his first time out as a two-year-old and at the age of three in a listed race at Goodwood. He was a good- natured, kind horse and I was heartbroken when we sold him to America.
What was the best horse you've ever seen?
Mill Reef, ridden by Geoff Lewis, when I was a child. He absolutely blew me away when he burst forward from the group and won going away. Thinking about that moment always reminds me about watching races with the family.
Is racing a sexist industry?
It is, but it's getting better. I still think it's much harder for a girl to be a professional jockey as it's difficult to be taken seriously. You need to constantly prove yourself.
If you has to gamble your house on one horse at Glorious Goodwood, which horse?
Puteri Wentworth.
What is the biggest amount you've ever won and lost on a bet?
I'm not known for gambling but I won a reasonable amount on a double wager on La-Modiste and Soviet Bureau. Naturally, I went out and raided my favourite designer clothes shops with the winnings.
Have you ever eaten horse? No!!
Where do you stand on the hunting debate?
I've always been anti.
Have you ever known a race to be bent?
No. I feel that the time and money spent by the Jockey Club on security ensures that British racing is the most straight and fair in the world.
Which figures do you least and most admire in racing?
I sometimes feel frustrated by policies set by the British Horseracing Board. Jenny Pitman is my heroine.
Which author do you prefer, Dick Francis or John Francome?
John Francome.
Which racing coverage is better, BBC or C4?
Channel Four, but I think Clare Balding is very good on the BBC.
Should women jockeys have a weight allowance or is competing on even terms fair?
I think that to encourage more women to enter the sport we need to give the trainers a reason to break through the gender barrier and start using female jockeys. I can't think of any other sport in the world where men and women compete on equal terms and I do feel that in terms of fairness women should have a weight allowance.
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