Gai Waterhouse had to defy the weight of her famous father to become a female trailblazer and legend of the track.
Gai Waterhouse learnt two things at a very young age: how to talk to important people and how to read a horse’s mind.
It was a somewhat unusual, albeit fitting upbringing for Waterhouse, who has gone on to build relationships with some of the world’s most powerful in a three-decade career as a horse trainer. After finishing school, Waterhouse auditioned for Australia’s National Institute of Dramatic Art and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. She was accepted into both, and rejected both.
Women had scarcely made a mark on the racing industry when Waterhouse began her career. There were very few female jockeys and only one woman trainer at Randwick Racecourse – Betty Lane – who died last month at the age of 97. In 1976, Lane was the first female to be granted a Sydney trainer’s licence by the Australian Jockey Club, then the ruling body.
A lot has changed since then – Waterhouse has previously said there are more women jockeys and an increase in female veterinarians too. In 2015, Michelle Payne made history as the first and only female jockey to win the Melbourne Cup, riding Prince of Penzance.Waterhouse said she still receives comments on the hats she wears, or the colour of her lipstick.
For a decade, Waterhouse worked under her father and uncle helping out at the family stables at Tulloch Lodge, watching jockeys such Shane Dye and liaising with horse owners. Katie Page, CEO of Harvey Norman and owner of Magic Millions, said Waterhouse was one of the most significant contributors in the history of Australian racing.
“I’m like a football coach or a swimming coach,” she says. “My job is to observe the horses, make notes, read notes, listen to what the jockeys and riders have to say, talk to Adrian . It’s about making the right decisions.”, Sydney jockey Tim Clark said she never left a stone unturned and had great attention to detail. “She expects that from the people working around her,” he said.
Waterhouse’s experience in racing goes beyond just training horses. She is also an investor – and more than 90 per cent of the horses she has bought in Europe have won in Australia already. Page says Waterhouse also encourages international buyers to invest in the local racing industry. Fashion, one of Waterhouse’s other passions, has changed, too. Waterhouse believes race day is the one time women can “feel feminine and look feminine”. “I love fashion, it’s a wonderful way of expressing oneself,” she says.
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