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Rachael Blackmore shares funny perk of being in relationship with fellow jockey Brian Hayes amid retirement bombshell

RACHAEL Blackmore outlined a funny perk of being in a relationship with another jockey mere hours before announcing her retirement. Monday brought with it her bombshell announcement that she was Advertisement 3 She completed the 'Big Four Set' at this year's Cheltenham Festival when she won the Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle aboard Bob Olinger 3 She's won over €9million in prize money over her entire career 3 She mostly keeps her life with boyfriend Brian Hayes very much private 24 hours previous she had appeared on In between each musical interlude, the generally private Tipperary native shared snippets from her personal life from going up on a farm to her time as a student in UCD. At one juncture, O'Connor enquired about The 35-year-old insisted their chats don't revolve around horse racing as much as people assume when two people from within the industry are dating. Advertisement Read More On Irish Sport She did, however, quip about one lovely benefit to them being in the same line of work. The trailblazer told "But we don't talk about racing half as much as people think we might. "We both understand what it's like to be a jockey and yeah I suppose I don't really know any different." Advertisement Most read in Horse Racing She doesn't know any different as she's been a jockey for almost half her life. In bringing the curtain down on her 16-year stint as one, Aidan O'Brien 'fires shots' at rivals as superstar horse is slashed for Epsom and the Arc after Ryan Moore masterclass She became the first female jockey to Blackmore also became the first female to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup on A Plus Tard in 2022, one of 18 winners at the Cheltenham Festival. Advertisement She rider spent three months on the sidelines with a neck injury earlier this year and she struggled for form when she returned to the saddle. But she ended up having another hugely successful season and completed a clean-sweep of the four flagship Cheltenham Festival races when winning the Stayers' Hurdle on Bob Olinger in March. She also Reflecting on her rise to the top in a heartfelt retirement statement, de Bromhead was one of two trainers she reserved special gratitude for. Advertisement PARTICULAR PRAISE She recalled: "I rode my first winner for (John) Shark Hanlon, who then helped me become Champion Conditional. "I will be forever grateful to Shark for getting behind me, supporting me and believing in me when it would have been just as easy to look elsewhere. He was the catalyst for what was to come. "A conversation between Eddie O'Leary and "Eddie got me in the door at Knockeen, and what came next was unimaginable: Advertisement "He's a phenomenal trainer, who brought out the best in me. Without Henry, my story is very different. "To all my great friends – you made winning special. Brian Hayes won't enjoy getting a mention, but he was more important to my career than I'll ever be able to thank him for."