The Riding A Dream Academy, launched on the back of an historic Magnolia Cup victory for young Muslim woman Khadijah Mellah, will hold a week-long residential course aimed at encouraging youngsters with little or no riding experience.
The academy supports people aged between 14 and 18 from diverse ethnic communities and underprivileged backgrounds. In 2021, a residential course for riders was held at the British Racing School in its pilot year, along with the Khadijah Mellah Scholarship. Funded by the Racing Foundation, the academy was established to help make horseracing more accessible to young people from diverse backgrounds.
Khadijah Mellah, who became the first British Muslim woman to ride a winner when landing the Magnolia Cup at Goodwood in 2019, said, “After the success of our pilot year we wanted to make sure that we were providing opportunities that would allow as wide a group of young people as possible to spend time learning how to look after racehorses and finding out more about horseracing. This is an amazing opportunity for young people who love animals and are wanting to try their hand at something new, whilst also finding out more about the opportunities for them within the sport.”
Naomi Lawson, director and co-founder of the academy added, “When we first launched the Academy we had lots of applications from young people who had been inspired by Khadijah and wanted to get involved but didn't have the experience to join one of our riding-based courses. Thanks to the support of the Racing Foundation we are now able to offer these young people a specially tailored course which will introduce them to the world of horseracing, including how to care for our racehorses and all the different facets that make up the sport.”
The fully funded residential week at Newmarket's British Racing School runs from Oct. 24 to 28. It will include visits to racing yards, studs and racecourses. Applications close on Wednesday, Sept. 21. Further information about the course can be found here.
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