THE 15-year-old Cathy Gannon cried every day as she took the bus from Donaghmeade to Kildare to attend RACE and begin her journey to becoming one of the world’s leading female jockeys.

Almost a decade later, she was moving even further away from the family she held so dear, as opportunities dried up in Ireland, despite having enjoyed eight years with John Oxx and becoming the first female to be champion apprentice in Ireland in 2004.