Blake Shinn


Blake Shinn is an Australian jockey, who rode the 2008 Melbourne Cup winner on Viewed for trainer Bart Cummings.
Shinn grew up in Kilmore, Victoria being born to a family of saddlers.
He was the winner of the Racing Victoria Limited 2005 Scobie Breasley Medal.
On Melbourne Cup day 2010, Blake Shinn missed his ride in the cup on Precedence, after a fall in Race 3 at Flemington resulted in him being taken to hospital. He was replaced by James Winks.
On March 19, 2016 Blake won the Golden Slipper at Rosehill race course in Sydney on Capitalist.

Early Career

Apprentice to Lee Hope

Born to a family of jockeys, Blake Shinn is the son of the late champion apprentice jockey Gerald Shinn. It was his stepfather Lee Hope who encouraged his love of racing. From a young age, Hope encouraged Shinn to explore a variety of sports inside and out of racing. When Shinn told his stepfather he'd like to become a jockey, Hope immediately stepped into help mentor the teenager and soon signed Shinn as his apprentice.
"I was pretty fortunate to have a father-figure who would take me to the races and point things out and was always there for advice when I went through that bad patch of being suspended for being taken over-keen. Lee was always there to set me straight," Shinn tole The Age in 2008.
Entering his first race in May 2003 aboard Suavette, it didn't take Shinn long to get a winner. Thirteen starts into his career, he walked into the winner's circle at Kilmore aboard Clearly Unique for trainer Dennis Berryman. Shinn quickly became one of the most talked about young jockeys, winning his first double on a card in June 2003 at Echuca, the riding his first city double nine months later in February 2004, two months after he won his first city race.

First stakes winners

On 13 November 2004 Shinn rode his first ever group winner when partnering with Count Ricardo for the first time. Riding for trainer Stephen Theodore, Count Ricardo an Shinn won the Group 2 Shannons Sandown Classic by 2.25 lengths.
Shinn's first Group 1 winner cam aboard Demerger in the Adelaide Cup in 2005 at 17 years of age when he was still an apprentice. He is believed to be the youngest jockey to win the race since its first running in 1864. The win came almost exactly two years after his first race ride in May 2003.

Scobie Breasley and the Melbourne Premiership

Shinn battled with fellow apprentice Nicholas Ryan for the Victorian Metropolitan Jockeys' Premiership during the 2004/2005 season. In the end he'd come in second but made history as the first apprentice ever to win the prestigious Scobie Breasley Medal. He battled for the award with Ryan, beating him 59 points to 55. It was the first time the award had been voted on solely by Racing Victoria stewards. Shinn was presented the award by 91-year-old Scobie Breasley.

Sydney move

Gai Waterhouse

In April 2007, Shinn moved to Sydney to become stable jockey for Gai Waterhouse. The move proved to be a smart one, with a Sydney premiership added to his resume during the 2007/2008 season - his first year with Waterhouse.
That season included the mount on Waterhouse-trained Sebring, who Shinn rode five of his six races. Shinn was suspended during the colt's Group 1 Golden Slipper victory but back aboard a week later to win the Group 1 Sires' Produce Stakes.
Shinn continued his association with the Waterhouse stable the following season, winning 26 races with the trainer. For the second straight year the duo teamed up to win a Group 1, this time with Rock Kingdom in the Group 1 Epsom Handicap. The victory was one of 60 victories that year for the young jockey - including 12 stakes with 33 additional placings in the sport.
Shinn has continued to ride for the stable in recent years as a freelance jockey. His winners with the Waterhouse stable since his return include champion English and Group 1 winners Prompt Response, Sweet Idea, Pornichet, and the opportunity to partner Fiorente in the Group 1 Cox Plate.

Melbourne Cup Win

In 2008 the then 21YO led to his already sizeable resume when winning his first Melbourne Cup aboard Viewed, edging out Bauer in a photo finish. The victory gave the legendary Bart Cummings his 12th Melbourne Cup winner and fourth for the partnership of Cummings and Dato Tan Chin Nam. It was a fitting victory with Cummings celebrating the 50th anniversary of saddling his first Melbourne Cup runner in that year's race.
"To win the Melbourne Cup for a living legend in the sport is a great honour and I thank him very much for giving me the opportunity," Shinn told the Sydney Morning Herald. "I can't believe it. It's one of the greatest moments in sport, to be able to ride the Melbourne Cup winner."

Betting disqualification

15 month suspension

In late 2010, Shinn was involved in a stewards' inquiry into betting on horse racing. After pleading guilty to right charges, Shinn was handed a 12-month riding ban while Peter Robl, Elaine Robl and Shinn's mother Carol Shinn were also charged with a breach of the Australian Rules of racing at the hearing as part of the scandal. Stewards also banned him for an additional three months for using his cellphone in the jockeys' room at Hawkesbury at one meet to place a bet.
Shinn appealed the ban and while the appeal was dismissed, the Appeals Panel ruled that the three month cell phone ban be served concurrently to his gambling ban. While he was banned, he received help for his gambling addiction and returned to race riding on the 21st of December, 2011, after complications from an injury stalled his comeback by a month. Riding Tellora, trained by his stepfather and co-owned by his mother, in his second race since his return, Shinn piloted home the filly to win by seven lengths.

Comeback

In January 2012, Shinn showed he was truly back from both the ban and injury when he won three races from four starters in one week at Canterbury and Warwick Farm. The following month he returned to the winner's circle in a group race aboard the aptly named Upbeat in the Group 2 Caulfield Autumn Classic for trainer Anthony Cummings followed by a Group 2 victory a few months later on Skyerush. Though he missed a large chunk of the season, Shinn was still able to win 42 races and place in an additional 84.
The following season the jockey was back in the full swing of things with 11 stakes wins, including his first post-ban Group 1 victory on Appearance in the Coolmore Classic. Though Shinn rode for familiar names such as Anthony Cummings and Gai Waterhouse that year, most of his mounts came from his mentor Guy Walter with the pair teaming up to win or place in 89 of the 164 races they ran in. Their final stakes win together came in the Group 1 Doomben Cup with Streama - Shinn's second Group 1 on the mare - five days before Walter died of a suspected heart attack.
2015/16 was a banner season for Shinn with the jockey winning five Group 1 races among his 29 stakes and 40 stakes placings. On the 10th May, 2015, his success continued when he pulled off a rare feat by winning five of nine races on a Doomben card. Included in those victories were Group 1 wins on Pornichet in the Doomben Cup, and BTC Cup on Hot Snitzel. His 149 wins that season was the most of any rider in Australia.

Current Career

Capitalist

In 2016, SHinn was given the mount on the promising 2YO Capitalist. After winning his first three starts in a row, then beaten in the Todman Stakes, Capitalist took out the Golden Slipper Stakes beating Yankee Rose by half a length. The victory not only made Capitalist the Champion 2YO colt that year, he also made history as the highest 2YO earner of prize money ever with over $3.5 million won.
"This is the best feeling ever," Shinn said. "I have to take my hat off to the team at Snowden Racing - Peter and Paul never wrote this horse off after his last start defeat. This is one of the greatest races in the world and to be able to win it; I can't thank everyone enough. It's not just for me it's for everyone along the way that has helped me."
Shinn was the only jockey to ever ride Capitalist in a race. Capitalist was retired two races after the Golden Slipper when he finished third in the Group 2 Roman Consul.

Top 2YO Jockey

Shinn has a reputation as being a top jockey for 2YO runners. His success with the young stock started early in his career when he won his first 2YO Group 1 with Sebring and the Group 3 Kindergarten Stakes with Here Comes Thunder during the 2007/2008 season.
Shinn has continued his success with the age group through the years with the likes of champions Capitalist and English. In 2017, Shinn won his first New Zealand Group 1 on the 2YO Summer Passage, the same season he won the Group 2 Todman Stakes on Gunnison.
Other 2YO group wins for Shinn include the 2016 Group 2 Reisling Stakes with French Fern, 2015 Group 2 Silver Slipper with Headwater, 2016 Group 2 BRC Sires' Produce with Attention, 2016 Group 3 Black Opal with Defcon, the 2007 Group 3 Diamond Prelude with Camarilla, and another edition of the Kindergarten Stakes with El Divino.

Riding Freelance

Shinn currently rides for a wide range of trainers. He is often seen on horses trained by Chris Waller, Peter & Paul Snowden, Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott, Bjorn Baker, John Thompson, Les Bridge, Mark Newnham, and a range of others training out of Sydney where Shinn is currently based.
The past few seasons, Shinn's most famous mount has been Happy Clapper, trained by Patrick Webster. Shinn first rode the gelding to a third-place finish in the Group 3 Spring Stakes in 2013, and has been his regular rider for many races since. Together the pair have won seven races including the Group 1 Doncaster Mile, Group 1 Epsom Handicap, and Group 1 Canterbury Stakes.

Riding in the US

Shinn spent a month race riding at Arlington Park in June 2017. His 15th ride in the country was his first winner with Brisson giving a victory to the Arlington Racing Club and trainer Wayne Catalano.
Shinn went on to win 11 of 74 races during his five-week stint with 18 placings. While in the U.S. he also worked with trainer and jockey coach Jose Corrales to help him learn the American technique of riding.
GROUP 1 WINNERS - AUSTRALIA
2005 Adelaide Cup - DEMERGER
2008 Emirates Melbourne Cup - VIEWED
2008 Sires Produce Stakes - SEBRING
2009 Arrowfield Stud Epsom Handicap - ROCK KINGDOM
2010 Darley TJ Smith Stakes - MELITO
2013 George Main Stakes - STREAMA
2013 Coolmore Classic - APPEARANCE
2014 Titan Energy Serv. Doomben Cup - STREAMA
2014 Coolmore Flight Stakes - FIRST SEAL
2015 BTC Cup - HOT SNITZEL
2015 Canadian Club Galaxy - SWEET IDEA
2015 Vinery Stud Stakes - FENWAY
2016 Golden Slipper - CAPITALIST
2017 Epsom Handicap - HAPPY CLAPPER
2018 Sydney Cup - WHO SHOT THEBARMAN
2018 Doncaster Mile - HAPPY CLAPPER
2018 Bisley Workwear Canterbury - HAPPY CLAPPER
2018 Sky Racing Tatt's Club Tiara - PROMPT RESPONSE
GROUP 1 WINNERS - NEW ZEALAND
2017 Sistema Stakes - SUMMER PASSAGE