Alfred Chan is eager to test his mettle against some of the best riders in the world and he will get his chance on Sunday, 31 March at Sha Tin, his first day as a licensed apprentice jockey in Hong Kong.

“I’m very excited because I’ve been overseas for a few years and my goal was always to ride here in Hong Kong,” Chan, 24, said during a media session at Sha Tin Racecourse this morning, Friday, 8 March.

“Last month, Amy (Chan – Hong Kong Apprentice Jockeys’ School headmistress) rang me and said ‘you have been licensed’ and I couldn’t sleep on that night because my dreams came true in that moment. I’m looking forward to being back in Hong Kong and riding in Hong Kong,” he continued.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club sends its prospective apprentices overseas to gain valuable race-riding experience and those who make the grade return to Hong Kong to compete against an impressive line-up of world class jockeys. Chan spent his time in New Zealand and South Australia.

In April 2015 he joined Mike McCann in New Zealand, moving on to Allan Sharrock, and had 49 wins from 469 rides by the time he headed across the Tasman Sea to the Morphettville stables of Lloyd Kennewell. He wound up his training with Jon O’Connor and returned to his home city with 100 wins on the board.

“I spent 32 months in New Zealand, 16 months in the north island and 16 months in the south island, and then I moved to Australia in December 2017,” he said. “It was very important for me because it enabled me to develop my riding skills.

“Most of the horses are already educated when they’re sent to Hong Kong so while I was overseas I was able to ride a lot of young, new horses; you’ve got to break them in and they’re different because they know nothing, that makes them harder to ride.”

Mr. Andrew Harding, the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Executive Director, Racing, said: “Hong Kong racing’s world class status has a lot of ingredients and one of those ingredients is its capacity to develop home grown talent. The Club invests significantly in this and we have excellent professionals in Amy Chan and Felix Coetzee and the staff at the Racing Development Board.

“Alfred Chan is a product of this system. He arrives back in Hong Kong well-equipped to meet the challenge of race-riding in this very competitive environment.”

Chan was a keen sailor before he became an apprentice jockey. The sports mad Kowloon lad attended Hong Kong Sea School in Stanley and was part of the Hong Kong sailing team.

“I first started with the Olympic Class and then the Laser Class,” he said, adding that he had not had time for sailing since he switched to navigating horse races. He had never so much as touched a horse before he joined the Apprentice Jockeys’ School at age 18.

“After graduation from secondary school, I saw a TV programme about the apprentice training and I thought that was what I wanted to do so I enrolled. I like sport and horse racing is a very good sport, after seeing that show I watched it and decided to try it,” he revealed.

Chan will benefit from the mentorship of his new boss, trainer Frankie Lor. The handler is in just his second season with a trainer’s licence but has made a huge impact in that time and has a wealth of experience, having started out as an apprentice jockey himself.

“I’m excited to have been allocated to Frankie Lor’s stable because I know that he gives a lot of support to local talent. He’s proved to people in less than two years that he’s a very good trainer so it’s an honour to be apprenticed to him. I’m sure I will learn a lot from him and I hope I will get a lot of opportunities from him,” the rider said.

Lor is equally pleased to have been given the chance to work with the 10lb claimer.

“I’m happy to have got Alfred,” he said. “Everyone knows I trained as an apprentice jockey with the Jockey Club, so I want to teach him what I have learned.

“Alfred will start work on Monday so I will look at his track work and see his riding skill. We will sit down and have a lot of communication about his progress and I expect he will have a lot of self-motivation.”

Mr. Harding said: “One of the most significant influences on an apprentice jockey’s career is the pairing of that apprentice with a trainer. The trainer has such a crucial role in moulding the apprentice at a crucial stage of their career, mentoring, advising, teaching and supporting them.

“Frankie Lor is the personification of the outstanding quality of Hong Kong’s home grown talent. I am certain that Alfred will benefit enormously from his time with Frankie.”

Chan added: “I’ve still got a lot to learn: it’s world class racing in Hong Kong and I’m the new guy so I hope to learn from everyone and become a better rider. I will try my best to perform well.”