'It was daunting the first time I went into a prison' - how two ex-jockeys are helping to solve racing's stable staff crisis
Dominic Elsworth and Ryan Hatch tell Andrew Dietz about a fascinating initiative in the West Midlands
A team of racing professionals past and present is at the forefront of a unique venture that is tackling the sport's staffing crisis head-on while changing the lives of disadvantaged people.
Former jockeys Dominic Elsworth and Ryan Hatch, who reached the pinnacle of jump racing, are undertaking a different type of schooling as trainers of pupils at a new equine management course in the West Midlands.
The six-week programme is designed to turn someone with no experience of horses into an employable asset for any racing stable, so many of whom are desperate for staff.
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- 'I went through shock, grief for the life that's stopped, fear for the future – then in the blink of an eye Racing Welfare put their arms round me'
- A corruption case like no other: inside the Hillsin investigation that brought down Dylan Kitts and John Higgins
- 'Jockeys would be really terrified' - the group born in secrecy and fear that proved riders can do much more than sit on horses
- Inside the £5.9 million overhaul that racing professionals can’t use, can’t contact and can’t stop paying for
- 'Unfortunately, there is still a bit of a stigma' - but is the tide turning for female jump jockeys?