The second Magic Millions Racing Women Achievement Awards ceremony took place on Friday with winners recognised from all around Australia. We caught up with Teresa Poon, owner of Musk Creek Farm and founder of the Australian Chinese Jockey Club, who was honoured for her contributions in the Victorian racing industry.
Friday night saw the second Magic Millions Racing Women Achievement Awards ceremony take place on the Gold Coast, celebrating the success and contribution of women nationally across the Australian thoroughbred industry. The awards were first held last year, where Lindy Maurice, CEO of Thoroughbred Industry Careers, received the inaugural National Racing Woman of the Year Award for her exceptional work in setting up a national Pony Racing series and Thoroughbred Industry Careers.
This year, the decision was made to recognise the achievements of five women, from five states or regions across Australia, and award each one with a $10,000 Racing Women scholarship from TAB to put towards bolstering their endeavours in the industry.
Finalists were announced last month and a panel of judges, including trainer Gai Waterhouse and syndicator Denise Martin, whose industry contributions were recognised last year with the foundational Racing Women Hall Of Fame Award, selected their winners. Announced on Friday, trainer Annabel Neasham received the NSW & ACT Racing Woman of the Year award, and G1 Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Sheila Laxon recognised as the QLD Racing Woman of the Year. Champion jockey Clare Lindop was recognised for her mentorship and charity work as the SA & TAS Racing Woman of the Year, and trainer Ella Clarke received the WA & NT Racing Woman of the Year award.
In Victoria, the spotlight was shone on Teresa Poon, proprietor of Musk Creek Farm and founder of the Australian Chinese Jockey Club. The award recognises a project that Poon brought to fruition in the last year that seeks to educate the next generation on the inner world of the thoroughbred industry: Racing 101.
Uniting a community
Hailing from Hong Kong, Poon has committed over three decades to the Australian thoroughbred world. As the proprietor of boutique Victorian nursery Musk Creek Farm with David Kobritz, she has become entrenched in the industry, and it was through her expansive network of contacts that she noticed the industry was failing to engage with a key audience. Nothing was getting the Asian population engaged with racing.
Teresa Poon and David Kobritz | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“You walk around the sales complex and you can see a lot of Asian faces, but they seem to be a bit lost,” she said. “When you are a newcomer, you are a little bit apprehensive. ‘Where should I begin? Will I look stupid if I want to have a look at a horse?’
“So, I thought, there has to be something that can help them to engage, and to make it easy and more comfortable for them to get involved.”
In 2015, this thought pattern led to Poon founding the Australian Chinese Jockey Club (ACJC). In Poon’s words, it “seemed the right thing to do at the time”. In the beginning, the organisation facilitated trips to race days and to the sales for interested members who wanted to become more involved in the industry.
To Poon, the local Chinese and broader Asian communities already knew about racing, but they needed that foot in the door to become truly engaged with the sport. Racing Victoria came on board to support the club in 2017, and they have since grown to have chapters in Melbourne, Sydney, and Perth.
Million-dollar club
A chance meeting at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale would take the club to the next level.
“The first time that we brought people to the sales was the (Inglis) Easter sale in Sydney, and lo and behold, Gai (Waterhouse) came over and said hello to us, and took us to (the) Arrowfield (marquee) for breakfast,” Poon recalled. The members invested in a horse of Waterhouse’s selection, and the new partnership was solidified.
“Everyone wants to win a Melbourne Cup,” she continued. “We bought into a few stayers that Gai bought from overseas and had a bit of luck.”
And not just a little bit of luck either – ACJC part-owned Knight’s Order (Ire) (So You Think {NZ}) delivered five black-type victories once he touched down in Australia, crowned by his 2.05l victory in the G1 Sydney Cup in 2022, just a week after a narrow second placing in the G2 Chairman’s H. Currently the club’s top performer is 7-year-old Just Fine (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), who jumped from a BM94 to winning the G1 Metropolitan H. in just three starts.
Knight’s Order (Ire)
Gallery: Some of the top performers for the Australian Chinese Jockey Club
The ACJC now has shares in around 30 horses, referred to as their Million Dollar Club, taking small shares in several performers each year and syndicating the shares out between members who want to be even closer to the action.
“Obviously there are some (horses) that are not very successful, but the most successful ones get a lot of attention in the community, and it grows from there,” Poon said.
A gap in knowledge
“In the last year, I looked at the industry and there is a lot of negativity about horse racing,” said Poon. “‘It’s bad because of gambling, because it’s cruel’. A lot of those things came from a lack of knowledge.
“And I started to think, why don’t I (create) a program and talk about the many aspects of thoroughbred racing, from breeding to the sales to the races? What about the many job opportunities that we can offer young people?”
And thus, the seed of Racing 101 would start to germinate. Poon started to put together a program geared towards university students and new graduates within the Asian community that would help them not only learn more about the thoroughbred world but also forge new connections with each other. Besides new friendships, the great leveller of racing grants more access to successful figures than most other industries.
“Racing is one of the areas that you can actually meet successful people in a very neutral position,” she said. “How often can you sit around with Gerry Harvey and listen to his story? You come to the sales, you sit in the Vinery marquee, and he’s having a sandwich – and he’s very forthcoming and friendly.”
Poon launched the inaugural run of Racing 101 last March with an introductory evening over Zoom and the program took off. Amongst several educational trips, the group visited Poon’s Musk Creek Farm and went wine tasting in the Mornington Peninsula. When they visited the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale, they made a pitstop at Living Legends for tea and meet-and-greet with some of the residents.
Such was the success of the program that it garnered her a nomination for the Racing Woman of the Year Achievement Award. Poon’s $10,000 scholarship will be reinvested here, in Racing 101, to ensure she can continue to offer the program on an annual basis, and extend the program’s reach.
“One of the few questions owners ask is, ‘What do we do with horses after they retire?’,” Poon said. “They care about the welfare of their horse.” This year, she would especially like to address those sorts of questions; she aims to take participants to the state-of-the-art veterinary facility at Avenel Equine Hospital, and to experience the critical work that goes on at Racing Hearts. The course is paid for purely through fundraising, making it as accessible as possible.
Ladbrokes have come on board to support the program and are scheduled to provide an in-depth look at the wagering system for ACJC members in March. Wagering is an important facet of the industry in Poon’s eyes, and she would like to reduce the negative image that many of the younger generation have on the business. The critical role that wagering plays in funding is important to get across – and it is another career avenue that Poon believes should not be overlooked.
Women as equals
One of Poon’s strong beliefs is to not think of herself as at a disadvantage in a world that seems so dominated, at least on the surface, by the other sex.
“It’s time that we actually see ourselves as equal and start doing things as equals,” she said. “That’s what I advocate for. You can’t go in there thinking that you are already disadvantaged – you are already behind the ball. You just have to go in (behaving) as an equal. That’s my deal.”
Over a lifetime of involvement in the industry, she has watched the long upwards evolution of women’s place in the racing world. She considers herself part of the generation of women who have developed invaluable tools to put the next generation on equal footing.
“For future generations, we have already given them the pathway to voice any inequality. We all know that we can stand up for ourselves and, if there’s anything wrong, we know how to raise the alarm.
“We can now really get into the game as an equal to our male counterparts. The rest is up to us to win everything with our merits.”
Her Racing Women award is an acknowledgement of the work Poon has put in to create a level playing field and encourage greater participation in her industry.
“I am doing a very small bit,” Poon remains modest about her impact. “It’s just the right thing to do, and it came to me at the right time.”
This articles was written by Kit Gow for TTRAUSNz.
