
Farewell To The Iron Lady
One of South Africa’s great lady trainers of the 20th century, the no-nonsense champion Jean Barnard Heming passed away at her home in England on Friday evening
One of South Africa’s great lady trainers of the 20th century, the no-nonsense champion Jean Barnard Heming passed away at her home in England on Friday evening
The racing world I knew and wrote about is no longer there. Racing is turning into a brand new thing. It’s becoming a niche industry geared to the big breeders, the big owners and the big trainers.
1993 blows out with Volume 4 of the Racing Record, a new chairman for Durban Turf Club and a proposal to merge Milnerton and Kenilworth approved unopposed. A Little Ballerina wins the Cape Guineas, Marla causes an upset in the Sceptre Stakes and Jean Heming is shot in a vicious attack. TAB Transvaal introduces the Superfecta and Take A Walk wins the Queen’s Plate for David Payne, pushing him R1 million ahead of his nearest rival on the trainers’ log.
Abroad, absent-minded jockey Desormeaux costs Kotashaan the Japan Cup, Basil Marcus extends his lead on the Hong Kong jockey table by winning the first leg of the Hong Kong Triple Crown aboard River Verdon, while Robbie Fradd is crowned Mauritius champion jockey. Coolmore announce that Sadler’s Wells stud fee has increased to IR100.000 guineas. The British Jockey Association launches the first Jockey Championship and Wolverhampton stages the first race meeting under lights.
After a record-shattering 2023/24 season, reigning SA Champion jockey Richard Fourie continues to rewrite the history books and broke the East Cape season winner record at Fairview on Friday
Sensational six winners at the Vaal on Thursday for former SA Champion!
Was the last galloper to win a race on SA soil with a seriously hefty impost Buddy Maroun’s champion Golden Loom, aka ‘Goofy’, who lumbered 65 kgs under Anton Marcus to beat Fov’s Favourite 26 years ago?
The Ndoro Stud-bred son of Wilgerbosdrift’s War Front stallion Fire Away, Alec Laird-trained Fire Attack dominated the 2025 Highveld Feature Season Awards