Modern fairy-tales do not come by easily. But, when they do pop up once in a while it would be so refreshing as to prop us up from the humdrum of life.
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| Michelle Payne with Prince Of Penzance (Photo credits: Elleuk.com) |
It has been Michelle Payne's dream as an Australian jockey to win the renown Melbourne Cup and, against formidable odds, she became the first female jockey to win it recently in what has been dubbed as a "race that stops a nation".
Her challenges are many such as: losing her mom due to a car accident when six months old; sustaining a series of injuries throughout her career; and dealing with chauvinism in a sports dominated by male jockeys.
But, Michelle persevered and kept dreaming. Finally, at 30-years old, even when she is on the verge of retiring from the sports with a desire settle down and wind down, she steered Prince Of Penzance to a historical win.
In her post-race interview together with her brother Stevie, who works as her strapper notwithstanding his Down's Syndrome, she said that her father has been supportive of her desire to be a jockey. Apart from hard work and perseverance in pursuit of her dream, I would surmise that her family support has given her an added impetus to succeed.
Also, she is aware of the inner strength of her Prince Of Penzance and know how to tap into its strength. As she puts it, "... it's not all about (human) strength, there is so much more involved, getting the horse into a rhythm, getting the horse to try for you. It's being patient."
And, if you watch the race, you would see that she was patiently working with her Prince up the ranks before making the final dash to outstrip the all-male competition.
Click on the following to watch her post-race interview:
'I just couldn't believe we'd won the Melbourne Cup': Michelle Payne
Click on the following to watch the pulsating race:
Melbourne Cup 2015
Click on the following for highlights of the race with salient commentaries and watch the jubilation of this group who called themselves "small fry investors" in Prince of Penzance:
Jockey Michelle Payne First female winner of the Melbourne Cup
Melbourne Cup: Michelle Payne, Prince of Penzance welcomed home in Ballarat
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