Cup winner Hayley Turner says women do not need an allowance in Britain

Hayley Turner believes a second Shergar Cup win for the Girls team in four years proves female jockeys do not need a weight allowance to be competitive in Britain.

Turner, Josephine Gordon and Hollie Doyle got the better of Great Britain and Ireland, Europe and the Rest of the World at Ascot on Saturday, just as she, Sammy Jo Bell and Emma-Jayne Wilson did in 2015.

Girl power! Women on top in memorable Shergar Cup

"We've had some good girls riding over the years and I don't think our success surprises anybody, it's quite normal," said the jockey, who also won the Alistair Haggis Silver Saddle for the top-scoring individual rider at the meeting.

Hayley Turner executes a perfect ride to take the Shergar Cup Mile on Via Serendipity (left, pink)Credit: Alan Crowhurst

Turner, 35, has ridden in France, where the introduction of a weight allowance – now 1.5kg on the Flat – last year to help women jockeys was a key reason why she returned to riding, having retired in the autumn of 2015 before returning the following year to mix race-riding with her media work.

As it happened: relive Shergar Cup day as the Girls snatch a memorable win

Pointing to the evidence of the Shergar Cup, she said: "It shows we don't need an allowance over here. The allowance in France has certainly increased the number of girls riding, but I don't think it's something that needs to be brought in over here. We can compete on level terms."

Turner was speaking little more than a month after the launch of British racing's first Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan, one of the aims of which was to support and promote opportunities for female jockeys and assess whether further action was needed to ensure they are given fair and equal opportunities compared to male counterparts.

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Turner was making her 12th appearance at the Shergar Cup and is a big fan of the unique event.

"It was amazing, such a fun day," she said. "They put on such a good show every year and I'm lucky to be involved."

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