Hollie Doyle is gearing up for a return to Hong Kong for the 2024 LONGINES International Jockeys’ Championship (IJC) at Happy Valley on December 4, hoping to claim her first victory in the event.
Doyle's flat season in the UK has been impressive, including two Group 1 wins aboard star-sprinter Bradsell which helped her reach the impressive milestone of 100 winners for the sixth consecutive year. This success has cemented her as one of the top jockeys in Britain, and she's now aiming to add the IJC title to her ever-growing list of achievements.
The 2024 renewal of the IJC will mark her fifth time competing in the event, having already broken records on previous visits. In 2020, she became the first female jockey to win a race at the meeting, going on to finish joint-third overall. In 2021, she won on Viva Hunter to take second, narrowly missing out on the top spot.
Doyle's globetrotting exploits have not been limited to Hong Kong – she is currently wintering in Japan, having already taken rides this year at both the Melbourne and Breeders' Cups in Australia and America respectively.
In an interview given to the Hong Kong Jockey Club, Doyle said, "It's great to be invited back to the IJC for a fifth year. The last few times I've been a part of the event I've always hoped to come back for the next year and the HKJC have been great to me. It's an honour to go and represent Great Britain, be a part of it all and compete against some of the world's best jockeys."
"I'm currently in Japan until December," she said. "It's a place Tom (Marquand) and I love to come to and I'm really lucky to be able to travel while riding. I've ridden all over the world now and I try to go everywhere I can given the opportunity, as you want to be high on people's lists to use in the big races. Competing around the world is what I want to do. I love the international experience and the more you can get the better."
"Obviously the rides you are allotted in the IJC are important, but so is the draw. A wide barrier can be pretty detrimental as Happy Valley is such a tight track. The races are ultra-competitive but, luckily, I've had a few opportunities and a few winners around there, so I've got to know the track quite well. Having that experience under my belt really helps."
"I'm hoping to pick up some spare rides on the Happy Valley undercard. Spares don't often come about but I'm lucky in that I can do a very light weight. We'll have to see how it plays out."
Doyle will stand alongside Ryan Moore and James Doyle as Team Great Britain, with rides set to be allocated on 2 December.
While Doyle won't be present for the LONGINES Hong Kong International meeting, her husband and fellow jockey Tom Marquand is expected to resume the partnership with Dubai Honour in the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase on 8 December.
