Having made history by becoming the first female jockey to ride a Group 1 winner in Japan, Rachel King hopes for another notable achievement in 2025 when she represents Australia in the LONGINES International Jockeys’ Championship (IJC) at Happy Valley on 10 December.

British-born King is back for her third crack at the lucrative championship after finishing third on debut in 2023 and joins Great Britain’s Hollie Doyle as the women who will pit their skills against seven other international jockeys and three representing Hong Kong, China.

“It’s very exciting to be coming back,” King said. “Obviously, since the first year I came (to Hong Kong, China) it’s something that I want to get my name on the list every year and I’m very honoured to be asked to come back again.”

King said she felt lucky to ride a winner, Oversubscribed, in her first year, when she finished third overall to local riders Vincent Ho and Zac Purton, who look set to lead Hong Kong, China’s three-pronged attack again.

After finishing with zero points last year, King said she was keen to return and attempt to secure a few winners. She also plans to remain for the LONGINES Hong Kong International Races on Sunday, 14 December at Sha Tin, where she hopes to pick up some rides.

“We always have the option to stay and normally I go back to Sydney, but I am going to try to stay and hopefully get a few rides on the Sunday,” King said. “Mark Newnham will be my first contact because (I was) attached to him in Australia, so I’ll be calling him first and see where we go from there.”

The allocation of horses in the four-race competition, where points are awarded for the first three places, has worked well, and King believes everyone has a fairly good chance to share in the HK$1 million prize pool, which rewards the winner with HK$600,000, second with HK$250,000 while third takes HK$150,000.

“I guess it’s a bit of luck of the draw on the night,” she said.

King said it was already a win for her to be included in a star-studded line-up of jockeys, including five previous winners – Mickael Barzalona (France), Joao Moreira (Brazil), Christophe Lemaire (Japan), Ryan Moore (Great Britain) and Zac Purton (Hong Kong, China).

“To get the chance to compete against those jockeys is really special,” she said. “I’m happy to be riding for Australia as it’s very much home for me.”

After riding in Hong Kong and Japan, King believes travelling and riding in different jurisdictions has helped her to continue improving.

“Just different horses and different jockeys and different tracks help to keep you sharp and switched on,” she said. “That little bit of a change always helps, even in Australia for Melbourne Cup week.

“Hong Kong is another challenge again as Happy Valley is very unique and I have really enjoyed riding around the track and, hopefully, I can get the chance to ride around at Sha Tin on the Sunday as well.”

Making history in Japan with the Group 1 victory aboard Costa Nova in the 2025 February Stakes (1600m) for trainer Tetsuya Kimura, King said it was a reward for the travelling and the effort she had put in.

She did two stints in Japan this year – two months from early January to early March and another month during July and August. She will return in 2026.

Having competed in 2024 at Royal Ascot, the Shergar Cup, and the Breeders’ Cup in the United States of America, King also rode in Saudi Arabia this year.