IRISHMAN Neil Callan bowed out of Hong Kong racing in triumph on Wednesday, surviving a protest aboard Tony Cruz’s Helene Wisdom Star to clinch the Class 2 Wong Nai Chung Handicap.

Neil Callan had three farewell rides at Happy Valley’s season finale, his last meeting as a jockey in Hong Kong.

“I’ve proved tonight, on the last night, that I can hold my nerve and control the emotion and still ride at my best. “Now I go home for my family – it’s all about my family. It was brilliant to win,” he said.

Callan, who rode his first winner in Hong Kong while on a short-term contract in 2010, has been riding in the city on a full-time basis since the 2014/15 season and has notched 283 wins.

With a total of 12 group race wins, including four Group 1s, the ‘Iron Man’, as locals hail him, has amassed £37.1 million in prize money from just over 4,000 rides. Sha Tin has been his most fruitful track with 171 wins, while Callan had a Valley total of 112 on Wednesday.

He leaves Hong Kong with a glittering list of honours, most notably the QEII Cup (2015 Blazing Speed), Champions & Chater Cup (2014 & 2016 Blazing Speed), Centenary Sprint Cup (2017 Peniaphobia) and the Hong Kong Classic Mile (2015 Beauty Only).

The Hong Kong racing season ended with Caspar Fownes, Joao Moreira and Vincent Ho and Golden Sixty securing the jurisdiction’s most coveted titles to crown an extraordinary 2020/21 season.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club has continued to manage the global Covid pandemic decisively, implementing the world’s best health protocols that have protected the welfare of its employees, racing participants and the public, allowing the sport to continue.

The Club closed out the season’s 88th and final meeting – one more than last season – having hosted a record 835 races and simulcast 206 overseas races, and posted turnover of HK$136 billion, representing the first time over HK$130 billion, or a 12.1% increase compared to that of 2019/20 season.

The betting duty reached a total of HK$13.7 billion, representing a 13.6% increase on the total from last season.