Nashwa gives Hollie Doyle chance of fulfilling Classic dream in the Oaks

There may well come a time when Hollie Doyle takes a fancied big-race ride and her gender does not rate a mention, but probably not until a few more “firsts” have been scratched from the list and Britain’s leading female Flat jockey has an obvious chance to nail one of the biggest in the Oaks at Epsom on Friday.

Around 250 Classics have been run in Britain in the half-century since Meriel Tufnell became the first woman to ride a winner on a British track in 1972. Every one has been won by a male jockey, so victory for Nashwa, the 4-1 second-favourite, in Friday’s Oaks would be a milestone not only for Doyle, but for all female riders in the only major sport in which they compete on level terms with male opponents.

The vast majority of Flat jockeys, regardless of their gender, go through their entire careers without riding in a Classic, never mind winning one. These are races that tend to feature the same handful of riders from one season to the next: those with a retainer to a major operation like Ballydoyle in Ireland or Godolphin in Newmarket.

Hard work – and some essential good luck – can take a jockey a long way, but reaching the very top requires sustained support from a major player. In that respect, Friday’s race is an opportunity that has been nearly two years in the making, after Doyle signed a contract to ride for Imad Al Sagar, whose colours were carried to a Derby victory on Authorized in 2007, in July 2020.

Al Sagar’s offer arrived just a couple of weeks after Doyle rode her first Group-race winner at Newmarket, and when Nashwa was still just one of the latest crop of yearlings at the owner’s Blue Diamond Stud. Twenty three months later, she is a worthy second-favourite for the Epsom Classic and Doyle has