Melbourne Cup winning jockey can't find a ride

Melbourne Cup winning jockey Michelle Payne celebrates. Photo / Getty

Less than a month after her historic Melbourne Cup ride, jockey Michelle Payne is struggling to secure rides in Sydney.

The 30 year-old will be at the Royal Randwich Racecourse on Saturday to celebrate her momentous 101-1 victory with Prince of Penzance last month, but efforts to get her rides at the event failed.

According to Sydney newspaper The Daily Telegraph, Payne's management sent out an email to trainers expressing an interest to ride at the event, but those approaches were knocked back.

Payne made headlines around the world following her victory last month when she labelled the industry "chauvinistic".

"I want to say to everyone else, get stuffed, because they think women aren't strong enough but we just beat the world," Payne said following the race.

But Payne's manager, Phillip Roost, has rejected suggestion that his client had been snubbed due to gender or her outspoken nature.

"Knowing the industry, it's no surprise. The fields are small and I guess the trainers wanted to use their regular riders,' Roost told The Daily Telegraph.

"There were simply no spots for her. If people think this is about her gender, well that's bulls**t. If you want to look anywhere, have a look at the size of your fields."
Payne is also accepting of the situation.

"It was a last-minute sort of thing and unfortunately I wasn't able to get a ride on the day. It is going to be fantastic to mingle with the public and the members and get some photo opportunities and hopefully sign some posters," she said.

"It will be nice to enjoy the day from a different perspective."

She has just returned from a brief holiday in Bali and only has one ride on Fab Favola at Moonee Valley on Friday night before heading to Sydney with brother Stevie, Prince Of Penzance' strapper, for Saturday's meeting.

The lack of rides is normal for any jockey coming back from a short break, Payne said.