Frankie Lor, Hong Kong’s newest licensed trainer, met the media this morning (Tuesday, 11 April) and acknowledged he is looking forward to fulfilling a long-held ambition when he officially takes charge of his own string at Sha Tin’s Olympic Stables on 17 July.
“This has been my ambition for a long time,” said Lor at a press conference today. “When my career as a jockey finished, I continued to work for the Club and decided I needed to learn more in the stable. I think every jockey, when they make that change, they all think that later on they would want to be a trainer here and it was the same for me.
“I’ve put a lot of years and a lot of work into this, so when I heard that I had got the licence I was very happy. And then there was a little thought about the next step, that this is a big challenge for me; but it’s a great challenge - one that I am excited about. I am thankful to the Jockey Club for giving me this opportunity.”
Lor, 51, rode in Hong Kong as an apprentice jockey and then a freelance rider between 1982 and 1995. Since then he has built up an impressive resum? as an assistant to a number of trainers, notably two of Hong Kong’s greats, John Moore and John Size. Lor will complete his four-year tenure with Size at the conclusion of the 2016/17campaign on 16 July.
Andrew Harding, the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Executive Director, Racing Authority, said: “It’s very easy to understand the decision that has been made by the Licensing Committee to grant Frankie Lor a trainer’s licence. He is a highly knowledgeable horseman; he has worked with, learnt from, been highly-trusted by and highly-valued by two of Hong Kong’s all-time great trainers (John Size and John Moore).
“He has also applied himself with great dedication to learning as much as he can, including studying breeding, attending overseas sales and visiting other countries to observe first-hand the different training techniques that exist around the world.
“A defining characteristic of Frankie Lor is the respect in which he is held by all those who participate in Hong Kong racing.
“Frankie has demonstrated that he is amply equipped to join the world-class ranks of trainers in Hong Kong.”
Size, last season’s champion and the current premiership leader, spoke glowingly of Lor at this morning’s media event.
“This is a natural progression for him and I don’t think he’ll have any problem making the adaption from an assistant trainer to a trainer in his own right,” Size said. “He will make a seamless transfer.
“He has some very good support from some well-respected owners in the community,” Hong Kong’s eight-time champion continued. “He’s good with the staff, he’s good with the horses, he’s good with the owners and that’s just about all you need to do. I’d like him to start off with a small number of horses but that’s not going to happen, he’s going to be very popular and he’s going to gather a lot of horses very quickly. He’ll get 100 percent support from myself and the owners that know him, and that will be a big help to him, I hope.
“I think he’ll acquit himself remarkably well and I think he’ll make very fast progress into the job.”
After 36 years immersed in Hong Kong racing, Lor understands the competitive nature of the circuit and, whilst he is looking forward with natural positivity, he is nonetheless keeping a lid on expectations.
“I can’t say how many winners I will have but I hope I will have 30 or 40 horses in my stable to start with and if I can win somewhere between 20 and 30 races I will be happy. I will try my best,” Lor stated.
“One thing I have learned from Mr. Size is that a horse must be happy and healthy, so I expect I will start a little slowly because I will need to get to know my horses first. It’s important to get a deeper understanding of each horse and ensure they are healthy and happy and then they will naturally maintain fitness and sustain their condition longer. I hope I can follow in the footsteps of good trainers like Mr. Size and have a very good career.
Lor and Australian handler Michael Freedman will be Hong Kong’s newest trainers when they take up their positions ahead of the 2017/18 season. As well as his strong grounding at Sha Tin, Lor has undertaken overseas work placements with Australian handlers Gerald Ryan and Bill Mitchell, New Zealand trainers Richard Collet and Roger James, and at Japan’s Ritto Training Centre; he has also gained experience at Cambridge Stud and Westbury Stud in New Zealand, as well as Shadai Stallion Farm in Japan.
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Frankie Lor (1st right), newly granted a trainer��s licence for the 2017/2018 season, meets the media with the Hong Kong Jockey Club��s Executive Director, Racing Authority, Andrew Harding (middle) and trainer John Size (1st left).
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Frankie Lor (middle) is set to commence his training career in Hong Kong next season.
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Photo 6: Frankie Lor answers the media��s questions during the briefing session at Sha Tin.
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