- Jockeys

Arnold, Steven Toledo

Australian Steven Arnold, 27, has ten years of riding experience winning more than 700 races with 2001 VRC Oaks and the 2001 and 2002 Australian Stakes amongst his haul of six Group 1 winners.  Arnold has also had short riding stints in the Malayan Racing Association circuit and in Macau in 1997. He also rode in Dubai during the World Cup Carnival last year.

Chavez, Oscar Trillion Win

Panamanian jockey Oscar Chavez, 27, was riding with plenty of success back home when he decided to ride in the MRA circuit in 1994. He is now a permanent resident in Singapore and he won the MRA Jockeys’ Championship in 1996 with 81 winners. His numerous big race winners include Noble Spirits in the 1994 Emirates Singapore Derby, Golden Glory in the 1995 Lion City Cup and Bold Explorer in the 2000 Silver Cup.

Childs, Greg North Boy

Greg Childs, born in New Zealand on February 6, 1962, has more than 20 years experience in the saddle. Apart from his homeland and Australia he also ridden in Singapore, Hong Kong, America and Dubai. He has ridden over 40 Group 1 winners including two Cox Plates, the AJC Derby, the VRC Derby (twice), the Hong Kong Mile, the Australian Cup (twice), the Doncaster Handicap and the VRC Oaks to name just a few. Childs will down in racing folklore as the regular partner of Sunline, one of the greatest names in Australasian turf history.

Du Plessis, Mark Tit For Taat

Mark Du Plessis, 25, from Zimbabwe where was a former champion jockey and apprentice, is currently licensed by the New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing Inc. To date he has around 400 winners to his credit. Apart from riding to a high degree of success in homeland, he has tasted victory in New Zealand, Melbourne and Mauritius. He is presently riding on a visiting permit in Singapore.

Dunn, Dwayne Charming City

Dwayne Dunn, 28, was South Australia's dominant jockey before taking up the offer to ride in Hong Kong last season. A bad fall at Happy Valley, however, after just a handful of rides put paid to any initial chances of success. However, he recovered back home and returned to Hong Kong for the current term and has notched up a very respectable 30 winners, including his first ever Group 1 victory on Charming City in the Chairman's Sprint Prize last April.

Geroudis, Johnny Blizz Bless

Johannesburg-born Johnny Geroudis, 30, is riding in Singapore on a visiting permit. The lightweight jockey completed his course at the famed South African Jockey's Academy and rode his first winner at 16.  He then teamed up with trainer Patrick Shaw for whom he booted home numerous winners including ten in Group 1 races and the prestigious July Handicap. The 30-year-old is currently second in the jockeys’ table with 22 winners. His big-race wins include Palace Line in the Singapore Classic.

Lao, Weng-hong Yorick

Weng-hong, Lao, 27, from Macau, is a familiar face to Singapore racegoers having ridden in the local circuit on several short stints between 1996 to 2000. In Singapore on a local permit, Lao is currently ranked sixth in the Macau Jockeys' Premiership with 38 winners.  Three times the champion apprentice back home, Lao’s big-race wins include the 1999 CTM Cup, the ATV Cup and the Macau Gold Cup in 2000 and the Winter Trophy and the Summer Trophy in 2001. He has ridden a total of around 500 winners.

Marwing, Weichong Firebolt

Weichong Marwing, born April 14 1970, won over 1800 races including six Derbies in his native South Africa where was champion jockey in 1996/97. Marwing was also the regular partner of Horse Chestnut, one of the greats of recent South African racing history. He lit up the latter part of the 1999/2000 campaign in Hong Kong with 31 wins from 162 rides - a winning strike-rate of 19%. The following season he was retained as first jockey by trainer Tony Millard but the partnership was dissolved midway through the term. However, he was named not long afterwards as the new jockey for the dual Horse of the Year, Fairy King Prawn, and he returned to win the Group 1 Chairman's Sprint Prize on the APQE II Cup supporting card. Marwing is now a Club Jockey again and, buoyed by further Group 1 glory on Olympic Express in the Hong Kong Classic Mile and the Hong Kong Derby, he is challenging for a first Hong Kong jockey's title.

Saimee, Jumaat Superb Effect

Jumaat Saimee, 30, Singapore's champion jockey, is regarded to be on par with some of the world’s best.  In all his 11 years in the saddle, the Singaporean has won the jockey’s championship four times. He also won more than 20 features among some 800 winners to date and is once again leading the Singapore jockeys' ranks.  In 1998, Saimee won his first jockey’s premiership with 111 winners and in the process broke the record set 29 years ago by expatriate jockey Glynn Pretty. Saimee is best remembered for his victory in the inaugural Singapore Airlines International Cup aboard Ouzo. He has also participated in international events in Hong Kong, Australia, South Africa, Macau and Japan.

Stevens, Gary Caller One

Gary Stevens, born March 6, 1963, began his riding career aged 16 and he won on his first ride, Lil Star. Not far off 5,000 winners later, including eight Triple Crown and eight Breeders' Cup successes, he has become one of the most successful jockeys in the history of the sport. He was voted into America's Racing Hall of Fame in 1997 and earned an Eclipse Award as the outstanding rider of 1998. He shocked the racing world in December 1999 when he announced his retirement from the saddle owing to persistent knee problems. However, he made a dramatic comeback just ten months later and, typically, won on the big stage shortly afterwards, landing the Breeders' Cup Mile on War Chant. Last year he was Point Given's regular pilot before the Preakness and Belmont Stakes winner was retired. He has won the Kentucky Derby three times and the Dubai World Cup once. In 1994/95 during a short stint in Hong Kong, Stevens rode 20 winners from 89 rides - an excellent 22.5% strike-rate.

Take, Yutake Air Thule

Yutake Take, born March 15, 1969, has been the darling of the Japanese racing scene for a long time now and it's no wonder with ten champion jockey titles to his credit and over 2,000 winners in the bag. He has won practically everything in Japan although it did take him a while to win the Japan Cup. He finally filled the one major domestic omission in his CV last season when Special Week defeated Indigenous in 1999. With hardly anything left to conquer at home, he moved to France last year where he rode over 30 winners including the Group 1 Prix de l'Abbaye for the second time having won the race in 1999 aboard Agnes World.  Take rode Stay Gold to success in the Dubai Sheema Classic and the Hong Kong Vase last year.

Thulliez, Thierry Danger Over

Thierry Thulliez, born in Paris in 1974, joined top French jumps trainer Jean-Paul Gallorini at Maisons-Laffitte and won 17 races over obstacles before moving to Chantilly to ride flat horses. A freelance jockey, Thulliez rides regularly for Maurice Zilber, Jean de Roualle, Pascal Bary and, more recently, Francois Doumen. His greatest success to date came in 1995 when he won the Group 1 Prix de Diane Hermes and the Prix Vermeille on Carling for Corinne Barbe. 2001 had been a good year for him. He finished 8th in the jockeys championship with 74 winners from 720 rides.