Latest news with #TonyOttobre
News.com.au
19-06-2025
- General
- News.com.au
Meet Australia's most generous family ‘bringing light' into the lives of the nation's neediest
The Ottobre family has earned the title of Australia's most generous family, having given hundreds of thousands of dollars away to those in need. Tony and Lynn Ottobre started their donating journey in 2015 after losing their daughter Jenni to brain cancer in hopes of finding a light in the darkness and helping others through hardship. Since then, they have donated over $300,000 across dozens of GoFundMe fundraisers. 'It started years ago when our daughter passed away in 2015, she passed away from brain cancer, and we felt that affiliation with similar patients going through problems that our daughter went and of course their parents,' Mr Ottobre told 'I think that brought us a lot closer to being a bit more charitable than what we normally be. 'It's a terrible position to be in, so we thought that if we could help others in some way that would be good.' Mr Ottobre said most of the fundraisers the couple donate to are in support of brain tumour patients, but in April 2023, they decided to step up to help leading jockey Dean Holland's partner Lucy and his four young children after he died in a tragic racing accident. After failing to find a fundraiser in the hours after Mr Holland's death, the couple decided to take matters into their own hands and create a GoFundMe – raising almost $2m in the process. When asked about being titled Australia's most generous family Mr Ottobre simply responded: 'Well, it's probably better than being the opposite. 'I suppose it's something that you don't even think of, we're not even thinking about being generous other than trying to help people. 'We've worked extremely hard … that we're comfortable enough to donate and help where we can. If we're got some extra and when we can, we help.' Mr Ottobre joked the pair will continue to donate until they run out of money, adding they feel 'much better' after donating to a cause that resonates. 'Donating makes you feel better. It's as simple as that. 'I'm happy for everybody else who is doing something similar because I know the kick they're getting out of it, what they're doing to help other people.' It comes as new research revealed Victoria's – the state Mr and Mrs Ottobre call home – most generous profession are tradies. To celebrate it's tenth anniversary, GoFundMe has uncovered who are the most generous everyday Aussies. Victorian tradies donate an average of $732 per year – 56 per cent higher than other states and a whopping 80 per cent higher than the national average across the country. Why? Builder Cameron Londsdale believes the close-knit communities created on the worksite extend to others doing it tough. Mr Londsdale said tradies were 'fairly compassionate people' who tend to look out for each other and the wider community, especially for a cause that hits home. 'For my most recent donation it was to the drought for the farmers,' he told 'I actually lost my uncle to suicide and he was a wheat farmer, and I know it's not really relevant to the actual drought itself but I know how hard he used to struggle with certain things … trying to help when I can.' He began donating about five years ago, often supporting fundraisers to do with farmers and mental health, and called for others to do what they can. 'Any little bit that you can spare helps especially with those the (issues) I've mentioned, the farmers and mental health, they're such important issues and they're never going to go away,' Mr Londsdale said. 'If you can help, it's definitely worth it.' The data shows Aussies are generous no matter where they live and what they do for work. 'Victoria stands out with the most generous tradies compared with those in other states,' GoFundMe Regional Manager Nicola Britton told 'By contrast, in New South Wales, our most generous group comes from the healthcare sector. 'In South Australia, it's those working in finance and banking who give the most, and in Western Australia and Queensland, we see strong support from the education and public sector communities – each averaging around $650 in annual donations. 'Our research shows that Australian generosity extends to two degrees of separation – nearly 40 per cent of us would donate to a friend of a friend. 'We also see strong support for cases of stolen tools, and causes involving mental health, recovery after accidents, and support for the families of colleagues.' 'Aussies are quick to act when someone is in need.'
News.com.au
06-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Queensland Oaks contender Jenni's Meadow marks full-circle moment for owner Tony Ottobre
In his younger days, prominent owner Tony Ottobre was an apprentice jockey for the late Hall of Fame trainer Colin Hayes. Now, in a full-circle moment, Hayes' grandsons Ben, Will and JD are training Ottobre's filly Jenni's Meadow in what looks to be a wide-open race in the Group 1 Queensland Oaks (2200m) at Eagle Farm on Saturday. The David Vandyke -trained Philia, chasing a fifth straight victory, has drifted slightly to $4.20 in the betting market after drawing barrier 16 while Jenni's Meadow is $8. Group 1 Australasian Oaks winner Benagil is $5.50 and the Chris Waller -trained Movin Out, with James McDonald on board, is $8 in the $700,000 race for three-year-old fillies. Both Movin Out and Jenni's Meadow came from well back in the field to heap the pressure on frontrunning winner Philia in the Group 2 The Roses (2000m) at Doomben two weeks ago. 'She did make a long sustained run and the way she finished off, you'd think the extra 200m (in the Oaks) will be no problem,' Ben Hayes said. 'We're really happy with her and she's done everything right. 'She's really thrived and her final piece of work earlier in the week was excellent. 'We feel like we're right on track, we're just going to need a little bit of luck from barrier one, which is the opposite of The Roses (barrier 14).' Ottobre started out as an apprentice jockey in the early 1970s for legendary trainer Colin Hayes, who established the famous Lindsay Park Stud in South Australia's Barossa Valley. Hayes built a training and breeding empire that produced an incredible 5333 winners by the time he retired in 1990, including two Melbourne Cup victories with Beldale Ball (1980) and At Talaq in 1986. • 'How do they work that out?': Trainer queries Joliestar 'best horse' tag Ottobre eventually realised his future lay in owning horses rather than riding them and he became a successful businessman. He now keeps his stable of horses at his Cape Schanck farm on the Mornington Peninsula, enjoying enormous success over the past two years with three-time Group 1 champion and reigning horse of the year Pride Of Jenni. 'He's got a little bit of history with Lindsay Park, which is good, so it'll be exciting to get a good winner for Tony,' Ben Hayes said about Ottobre, who names his Jenni horses after his daughter, who tragically died from brain cancer at age 26 in 2015. 'He's passionate and he loves his horses. She (Jenni's Meadow) has been a very good horse for him the whole way through. 'She's a Listed winner, black-type Group 2, Group 3 placed and she'll be around the mark. 'She's definitely more than capable (of winning the Oaks).' All horses in the three Group 1s – the Oaks, Queensland Derby (2400m) and Kingsford Smith Cup (1300m) – at Eagle Farm on Saturday have been passed by vets, with the exception of Let's Fly. Vets say the $21 Oaks chance has some muscle soreness and the filly will need to be trotted up again on race morning.
News.com.au
03-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Reigning horse of the year Pride Of Jenni to visit Yarraman Park stallion I Am Invincible this breeding season
Yarraman Park has confirmed that its three-time champion stallion I Am Invincible will be the first mating for reigning horse of the year Pride Of Jenni this breeding season. I Am Invincible, who will command a $220,000 service fee this season, leads this year's sires tables for both individual winners (180) and two-year-old stakes winners (5). He's the sire of champion sprinter Imperatriz and this year produced Vinrock, the winner of the Group 1 Sires Produce Stakes in Sydney. It looks a match made in heaven with Pride Of Jenni, a winner of 10 races – including her dashing victory in the 2024 Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes – and more than $10 million in prizemoney. Pride Of Jenni's owner Tony Ottobre said in a Yarraman Park announcement that he was 'in awe' of what I Am Invincible had done in his stallion career so far. 'I did look at the top stallions that were already here and I Am Invincible came up as a really good cross with her line of Street Cry, but also the fact that it's doubling to a superstar broodmare, Eljazzi,' he said. 'Eljazzi being the mother of Rafha, being the mother of Invincible Spirit. And Eljazzi, who's the mother of Al Anood who's the mother Pride Of Dubai (Pride Of Jenni's sire).'
News.com.au
02-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Pride of Jenni's owner Tony Ottobre to keep his lips sealed on retirement talk for champion mare
Scarred by the keyboard warriors who criticised Pride Of Jenni 's second coming, prominent owner Tony Ottobre has vowed to keep his lips sealed when he decides the time is right to retire the champion mare for good. Ottobre made what he admitted was an emotional decision to call time on the triple Group 1 winner's career after she bled when last in the Champions Mile at Flemington in November. But Ottobre changed his mind in the new year and in March, Pride Of Jenni returned with a bang, winning the Group 2 Peter Young Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield under 61kg. The seven-year-old then flopped in the $2.5m Group 1 Australian Cup (2000m) at Flemington before a 2.25-length victory in the Listed Anniversary Vase (1600m) at Caulfield early this month. She was then sent to Queensland for the Group 1 Doomben Cup (2000m), won by local hero Antino, but faded badly to finish 10th out of 12 runners. It prompted further questions over whether it was time for Ottobre to again hang up the saddle for the Ciaron Maher -trained mare, but the owner insisted Pride Of Jenni would be the one to make that call, not him. 'When she's ready, then we'll retire her. And there won't be any fanfare,' said Ottobre, who told Racenet recently that he had banned himself from social media. 'One day she just won't turn up to the races and that'll be it. 'I've already made an announcement and I tried to apologise to say that 'look, I did get it wrong' but it was 'boo-hoo to you Tony, we're still going to give it to you'. 'Well it'll be 'boo-hoo to you guys' because I'm not going to tell them when she's going to retire so it works both ways. 'I've always talked the truth but now I just have to clam up a little bit because it's not good for my family. 'I don't care, you can bag the s*** out of me but my family – my wife, my son, my grandchildren and my friends – they don't like to see that kind of stuff. 'I just can't believe how bad some people are with their thoughts about horses. It's pretty rank.' Pride Of Jenni returns with a bang at Caulfield as she goes all the way to take out the Listed Anniversary Vase 🙌 @cmaherracing @craig_newitt — (@Racing) May 3, 2025 • Ottobre said he felt vindicated in bringing Pride Of Jenni, who had won almost $10.5m in prizemoney, back to the racetrack. 'Because I mentioned that she was going to retire last year, ever since then everyone's been jumping on my case saying 'you should retire her',' he said. 'Then she won the Peter Young Stakes. She was just outside the course record that was 20 years old and had to carry 61kg. 'We did the right thing and people have got to give us some sort of credit for that because we don't retire her just because people say that we should. 'We have a judgment call to make and nine times out of 10 we make the right call. 'As far as I'm concerned, bringing her back and winning two out of the races she's raced in was vindication enough to say we were on the money.' The great mare is back! ðŸ'« Pride Of Jenni picks up where she left off, stringing her opposition out & trouncing them in the Peter Young Stakes. @cmaherracing @craig_newitt — (@Racing) March 15, 2025 Pride Of Jenni left Brisbane on Monday on a truck bound for Melbourne, where she will enjoy a spell before a likely spring carnival campaign. But just don't mention the R-word to Ottobre because he's had a gutful of the negativity surrounding his champion mare. 'They all talk about retiring and age but horses can run up until they're 13,' he said. 'I'm not saying I'll do that with her but it's no big deal that seven or eight-year-olds keep running. ' Chautauqua is the perfect example. He just told everyone that he didn't want to run.'
Daily Telegraph
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Telegraph
Pride Of Jenni's owner Tony Ottobre ahead of Doomben Cup
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. There are two things Tony Ottobre will never do again. Make a snap decision on race day. Or go on social media. Pride Of Jenni's owner admits he made a blue with his emotional announcement that his star horse had been retired when she was eased down in last November's Champions Mile at Flemington after suffering a bleed. 'It was just after the race, the (media) microphones came in and people wanted to talk to me and I had already had a bad day,' Ottobre said. • PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW! 'She had bled and, already, some people were starting to bag me and were bagging (trainer) Ciaron Maher. 'It was the most disappointing day at the races in my life. 'You don't make decisions on race day but I said, 'nah, I'm going to retire her, I've had enough'. 'You never make decisions on race day, but that's what I did. 'About a week or so later, after we got her back to my place (Cape Schanck Stud on the Mornington Peninsula) I started to think about it some more. 'I thought that she had basically got a blood nose. Why couldn't she race again? 'Plenty of other horses have done it.' Tony Ottobre (middle) after Pride Of Jenni bounced out of retirement and won the Peter Young Stakes at Caulfield in March. Picture: Racing Photos • Bott endorses Eliyass for Doomben Cup turnaround Freakish frontrunning mare Pride Of Jenni, the reigning horse of the year, showed she was still a force to be reckoned with after scoring the Peter Young Stakes in March when she bounced back from retirement. A vindicated Ottobre has now set his sights on Queensland and Saturday's Group 1 Doomben Cup which features a blockbuster clash between Pride Of Jenni and the Sunshine State's best horse Antino. There will be something for everyone in the Doomben Cup with many eyes on Pride Of Jenni up front, but also watching Blake Shinn aiming to pull a rabbit out of his hat with another daring ride on Tony Gollan's star Antino. Tony Ottobre and reigning Horse Of The Year Pride of Jenni. • 'No two-horse race': Gollan insists chances aplenty in Doomben Cup Whatever the Doomben Cup result, Ottobre won't see the social media light up after the race. He used to enjoy social media, sometimes spicing things up with a 'bit of banter' which he believed helped to make racing fun. Ottobre knows he might not be everyone's cup of tea, but says some of the vitriol he copped was beyond the pale. He has banned himself from social media and will never be back on socials. 'I'm not a sook or anything, but some of it was getting out of hand,' Ottobre said. 'If a bloke comes into my golf club and he's an idiot, we don't talk to him. Pride Of Jenni and owner Tony Ottobre after the mare's victory in the Listed Anniversary Vase at Caulfield on May 3. Picture: Scott Barbour / Racing Photos • Clinton Payne's 2025 Doomben Cup tips, runner-by-runner form analysis: $26 on-top tip So I was thinking to myself, why would I be on social media, with all the knockers giving it to me? 'Some of it was really nasty. 'Nobody probably wants to talk to a lot of these people in their real lives, so they go on social media. 'Why would I want to get involved in that? 'There is also a really sad side to social media, there are kids who have killed themselves because of social media abuse. 'I don't know how you monitor it. 'These days, I have no idea what is going on with social media and I don't want to know.' Vo Rogue, back in the day. • Derby 'carrot' for filly's prospective new owners Ottobre is about to jet into Brisbane for the Doomben Cup and he will have a special guest with him at the races on Saturday. He has struck up a friendship, largely via text messages, with Vo Rogue's legendary jockey Cyril Small. The similarities between Pride Of Jenni's dashing frontrunning style and that of Small's former star are easy to spot. 'We have got Cyril Small with us on Saturday, so that will be great,' Ottobre said. Cyril Small. Picture: Portia Large 'He has been really into the whole Pride Of Jenni journey, and the way she runs. 'He loves how she races and she reminds him of Vo Rogue. 'With Pride Of Jenni these days, we will take every run as it comes. 'At the moment, we know the horse is happy and she is enjoying what she is doing. 'She is a drawcard for a lot of people and if she had stayed in retirement, the members of the public would have missed out on watching a really good horse continue to race. 'A lot of people want to see her and take pictures of her and I think that is just great.' All of Ottobre and his wife Lynn's horses carry the name 'Jenni', in honour of their daughter Jennifer who died from a brain tumour in 2015. It will be the latest deeply emotional moment in an extraordinary chapter of Australian racing history if Pride Of Jenni busts her rivals hearts and surges to Doomben Cup glory on Saturday. Originally published as 'Some of it was really nasty': Tony Ottobre on Pride Of Jenni, social media and race day regrets ahead of 2025 Doomben Cup mission
