a day ago
Hijab-wearing jockey to make debut in professional race
Khadijah Mellah, who became the first hijab-wearing jockey to ride in a competitive race in Britain when she won Goodwood's Magnolia Cup in 2019, will return to the Sussex course on Friday evening for her first ride under rules as an amateur jockey.
Mellah, 24, has been booked by Eve Johnson Houghton, for whom she rides out, to partner Uncle Dick in the Gay Kindersley Memorial Amateur Riders Handicap over a mile and one furlong.
She has held an amateur licence for a year but, like lots of other amateurs who are not well connected, she has had to work hard and serve a three-year apprenticeship to get to the stage where she has earned a first ride.
'I'm absolutely buzzing,' Mellah said after getting the call from Johnson Houghton. 'It has been years in the making. I've really tried my hardest to continue my racing journey and it's an absolute honour to ride one of Eve's horses. I'm genuinely grateful that she's been true to her word that she would give me this opportunity.
'Amateur racing is hard to break into so I really am extremely grateful to get this chance and I'm determined to make the most of it. You get a million 'no's in this sport – it's the same for all aspiring young jockeys – so it's very nice when someone says 'yes' and gives you a chance. I'm so ecstatic.'
Johnson Houghton said: 'Khadijah's been nothing but an asset to the yard since she started riding out earlier this summer. She rides well and she's fit, which is a good starting point for her first ride, she's bright, she's unfailingly cheerful and she works really hard.
'Uncle Dick is a legend. He loves Brighton and has run well at Goodwood. He's won charity races so he's good for an amateur and he'll look after her but he's quirky. On his day he would be the best horse in the race and may even start favourite but he picks and chooses his day – he's made Charlie Bishop look stupid a few times by falling out the back of the television.
'She's already ridden him out but I've said she has to ride him out every day this week so she knows him really well by Friday. I like having a runner in Gay's race. He was all for a bit of fun and he'd have been over the moon for his race to be Khadijah's first.'
Bought up in Peckham, she initially learnt to ride at the Ebony Riding School in London and her success, at the first time of asking, in the Magnolia Cup was hailed as a huge step for the sport.
The Muslim jockey was the subject of a documentary Riding a Dream, which was aired on ITV and has now progressed to the Riding a Dream Academy, which she helped start, at the British Racing School in Newmarket.
The remarkable story of 18-year-old Khadijah Mellah and her journey to riding in the Magnolia Cup at Glorious Goodwood. Riding A Dream. Saturday 12.15pm @ITV
— ITV (@ITV) October 29, 2019
The programme is designed to encourage young people from all backgrounds to get a taste of racing and she was coaching students there, on their graduation morning, on Sunday.
After the Magnolia Cup she returned to university in Brighton to complete her degree in mechanical engineering and while there rode out for Gary Moore. After that she joined Adam West as a full-time member of stable staff but has been based in Lambourn since he left to train in France last year.
Mellah, who has nearly 20,000 followers on Instagram, has been riding out mainly for Charlie Hills and Johnson Houghton as well as fulfilling numerous commitments providing content to various racing social media outlets.
