While most of her classmates are still sleeping, 16-year-old Stephanie Thornton is at the racecourse.
A first-year apprentice jockey with lofty ambitions, her debut on the track was on the same day another female jockey - Michelle Payne - was making history.
"I'm going to win the 2020 Melbourne Cup,” she said. “It's every jockey's dream to win the Melbourne Cup and to see a female win it was without a doubt a very historic moment.”
But first she has to finish high school. This week Stephanie is cramming for Year 12 exams, taking VCE subjects a year ahead in the hopes of graduating early so that she can devote more time to racing in what is an increasingly competitive field in Victoria.
"We have over 50 apprentices so ideally you need to go out there and ride the best you can every time, because if you make a mistake trainers have other options because there are so many jockeys," she said.
The third child of trainer , her two older brothers are also jockeys.
Thornton studying. Source: SBS
Although a male-dominated sport, Mr Thornton said he doesn't expect Stephanie to be any less successful than her brothers.
"Some horses actually run a lot better for girls and no one could deny that,” he said. “But you look at your Hughey Bowmans, they're not there to hustle and bustle a horse, it's all about how you relate to your horse, and how you control them with your hands.”
And considering Racing Victoria's 2015 crop of first-and-second-year apprentices was more than 50 per cent female, it's clear gender isn't an issue.
Training three days a month in Flemington, graduates also earn certificates in fitness and racing.
Racing Victoria chief executive Bernard Saundry said the goal was to ensure apprentices had a successful career on and off the racetrack.
"We want to provide a safe working environment, we want to make sure their welfare is looked and also to make sure they're well rounded individuals,” he said. “To ensure they've got enough development and expertise to not only enjoy their careers in racing buy to ensure they have a career after racing."
The four-year apprentice program teaches everything from athletic development to business, to prepare students for all aspects of life as a jockey.
Stephanie Thornton said there's more involved in racing than just riding horses.
Source: SBS
"It's certainly not just, 'Get in the car and go to the races and do what you have to do'. In all honesty there's everything behind the scenes. You pretty much run your own business. You are your own business."
