Hollie Doyle – A meteoric rise!

Hollie Doyle hit the headlines once more on Sunday as she secured her first Classic, and in doing so became the first female to ride a French Classic winner. The 25-year-old guided filly Nashwa to French Oaks success at Chantilly.

Doyle’s first Classic win adds to a long list of achievements. From a background in pony racing, Doyle won her first race under rules at the first time of asking at Salisbury aged just 16. She rode out her claim four years later when recording 59 wins that season. In 2019, Doyle followed in the footsteps of Hayley Turner and Josephine Gordon in becoming the third female jockey to ride more than 100 winners in a season. Her 116 winners broke Gordon’s record of 106.

A year to remember

2020 was another record-breaking year for Doyle. Numerically, Doyle registered an astonishing 151 winners smashing her record from a year earlier. That was just the start of it. Scarlet Dragon provided Doyle with her first Royal Ascot winner as they combined to win the Duke of Edinburgh Stakes and a month later she secured her first Group victory aboard Dame Malliot in the Princess of Wales’s Stakes.

A year of firsts continued, and the 17th October will undoubtedly be a day Doyle won’t forget. A double on QIPCO British Champions Day included a first Group One. The day got off to a perfect start as she partnered Trueshan to a staggering seven-and-a-half-length victory in the QIPCO British Champions Long Distance Cup, against a field that included superstar-stayer Stradivarius.

Just 40 minutes later, Doyle met her milestone with Glen Shiel clinching the Group 1 QIPCO British Champions Sprint Stakes by the narrowest of margins. It was an anxious wait for Doyle whilst she waited for the photo finish, which triggered jubilant scenes on a special day.

Doyle received wider recognition outside of racing when she was crowned the Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year, before finishing third in the Sports Personality of the Year behind Jordan Henderson (second place) and winner Lewis Hamilton.

Continued success

Her 151 winners (2020) was once again surpassed the following year, with Doyle hitting new heights when riding 172 British winners in a season. She finished in third place in the Jockey Championship, just 11 winners behind first placed Oisin Murphy (186) and four behind now-husband Tom Marquand (176).

Not one to rest on her laurels, Doyle continues to impress in 2022. Two years after her first win at the Royal meeting, Doyle rode a third winner at Royal Ascot in as many years with two-year-old Bradsell winning the Coventry Stakes.

With a first French Classic to her name, Hollie Doyle is going from strength to strength and more success is no doubt on the horizon.