Ho has tasted G1 glory on a regular basis in Hong Kong aboard Stronger, Southern Legend, Loves Only You and the mighty Golden Sixty but this was his first place at elite level in Europe and the 34-year-old relished his initial experience of riding in Germany.
“I got the ride on Lady Mary through ‘Suby,’ who is a great guy and was riding in Hong Kong when I was just getting going as an apprentice,” he said.
“You always want to win but it was still a great run. I watched the last ten replays of the Oaks on the plane going over to Germany, so I knew that Dusseldorf was a challenging racecourse and that it wasn’t going to be easy for those horses drawn out wide.
“It’s a tough track, very different to Sha Tin or Happy Valley, but my filly got into a good spot from the low draw and travelled well. She kept trying all the way and her owner and trainer both seem very happy so it’s been a positive day and another useful experience.”
Currently based at Charlie Johnston’s Yorkshire yard for his first working trip to the UK since 2019, Ho rode a winner on his first night in action when Love De Vega recorded a decisive success at Pontefract last month.
Winners have been harder to come by since, but Brioni came within a neck of giving Ho a winner in a prestigious handicap at last week’s Goodwood Festival and a first visit to the historic Sussex venue also provided a chance to sample high speed action on four wheels.
“I had the chance to drive Ferrari and Alpina sports cars around the Goodwood racing circuit and that was something special,” he added.
“I’m looking forward to going to Japan for the World All-Star Jockeys’ competition in Sapporo on the 24th and 25th of August and then it will be back to Hong Kong at the start of September for another new season.”
A whip ban sustained on the night of his Pontefract success begins this Tuesday and will restrict Ho’s chances of adding to his UK tally of eight winners.
However, Ho was an accomplished showjumper before being chosen to join the HKJC Apprentice School in 2007 and the suspension gives him a chance to return to his roots In Paris to witness the last equestrian event of the 2024 Olympics.
“It’s the final of the individual showjumping on Tuesday and I’m really looking forward to being there,” he added.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s Ryan Moore or Christophe Soumillon in racing or Lewis Hamilton in F1 or the Olympic showjumpers, I always love seeing how top sportsmen handle things on big days.”
“Winning the big races is never easy, whether it’s in Hong Kong, Europe, or Japan,” he added. “But we all want the chance to do it and, of course, I’d love to go back for another G1 in Germany if the opportunity comes up.”
And so, with work and media commitments completed, Hong Kong’s most celebrated homegrown rider left Dusseldorf for a Parisian adventure on Sunday evening with another significant stamp on his international racing passport.
It wasn’t gold this time but the bronze medal in one of Germany’s most cherished races represented another firm step in the right direction.
“I drove for four hours to ride one unplaced horse in a Class 5 race at Musselburgh a couple of weeks ago but that’s no problem as the whole experience is good for me,” he adds.
“Everything I do here in Europe, from riding the two-year-olds and fillies on steep gallops and in races on very different racetracks like Dusseldorf, is valuable.
“It’s something I love and I’m sure it helps me to improve and go back to Hong Kong as a better rider.”
Or, to put it in Olympian terms: ‘Faster, Higher, Stronger.’
Bentley back in the British fast lane
Meanwhile, another Hong Kong-based rider made the headlines at Newmarket over the weekend as Harry Bentley guided the highly promising Shadow of Light to victory in the famous Godolphin Colours.
Charlie Appleby’s impeccably-bred Lope De Vega colt started as hot favourite for the British Stallion Studs EBF Novice Stakes over 1200m on Friday night and followed up his debut success at Yarmouth to win by two lengths with plenty in hand.
Bentley completed a quickfire double when winning on 25-1 chance Noisy Jazz in the following race and described his successful evening as “a very pleasant surprise.”
He added: “Charlie Appleby came up to me at Goodwood with the offer to ride Shadow of Light earlier in the week and he feels like a very promising young horse indeed.
“It hasn’t been my intention to ride much during the summer break – the plan has always been to recharge physically and mentally – but it’s been a good week and it would be nice to have a few rides at York’s Ebor Festival if the chance arises.”
A six-time champion in Qatar, Bentley broke into Hong Kong’s top ten riders for the first time in the latest season with 39 winners, headed by a G3 success for Tony Cruz aboard Whizz Kid in the Bauhinia Sprint Trophy at Sha Tin in January.
“Last season definitely felt like a breakthrough as the support really picked up with a better spread of trainers,” he added.
“I’m heading back to Hong Kong on 30 August.
“It will be straight into barrier trials ahead of an exciting new season and, although I’m not one for setting specific targets, it feels like things are building nicely and it would be great to continue on the right trajectory and beat last season’s total.”
