Even for the most seasoned jockeys, Hong Kong is a daunting place to ride, but you would not know it when speaking to the city’s newest apprentice Nichola Yuen Hang-yiu.

Granted, like all local apprentices, Yuen spent plenty of time honing her craft overseas, riding 78 winners across Australia, New Zealand and South Africa in five years before her April 1 debut in Hong Kong, but as is so often said, Hong Kong is a totally different beast.

The best of the best ride here, so you would have forgiven Yuen for taking some time to acclimatise and find her feet, but that has not seemed to be the case.

Last Sunday’s Sha Tin meeting marked Yuen’s third double so far and took her to 12 winners for the season, over halfway to the 20-winner mark that will see her claim be reduced from 10lb to 7lb.

Comparison is so often the thief of joy and statistics are hard to quantify, but just a brief look at the numbers shows you that Yuen is on an exciting path.

Jerry Chau Chun-lok, who smashed the record for the most winners in a single season as an apprentice back in the 2020-21 season, waved goodbye to his 10lb claim after 179 rides. Yuen has had only 88 local rides so far.

Again, the statistics should be taken with a grain of salt, but it has been a strong start for the 25-year-old, who is not setting concrete goals.

“I didn’t think too much about goals coming into this season, I’ll just keep working hard and hopefully the more winners I ride, the more confidence I can have,” Yuen told the SCMP after her Sunday double.

“I just keep working hard, ride my best every time, give the horses the best chance and perform my best every time.

“I’ve always believed in doing things step by step. I don’t really want to think too far, I’m just aiming for the next step.

“Hopefully I can get the 10lb claim off and then seven, five and then even maybe in the future I’ll be riding Group races – that’s my goal.”

Yuen is apprenticed to trainer Ricky Yiu Poon-fai and he could not hide his smile after the young rider mowed down champion Zac Purton in a desperate finish aboard Packing Glory on Sunday.

That supplemented her earlier win on Packing Glory’s stablemate Rapid Phantom and Yuen is extremely grateful to have the top trainer as her boss, though Yiu may begin to anxiously look at her winner tally in the near future.

“Ricky is a very good boss and he was a great jockey in Hong Kong, so he’s got very good experience and he can teach me how to ride all his horses,” Yuen said.

“He can also teach me all the tactics of riding in Hong Kong in a very competitive environment. So I’m very grateful to have him as my boss.”

Even in the face of relentless competition, Yuen has been receiving great advice from her weighing room colleagues, with one in particular giving her the best notes.

“It’s really competitive here compared to other places – all the top jockeys are here,” Yuen said. “I can say that it’s just the most competitive environment I’ve ever been in, but I have really learned a lot from all the top jockeys.

“Vincent Ho has been really helpful – I’m really lucky to have him as my idol. He’s the jockey I look up to.”

For Amy Chan Lim-chee, the Jockey Club Apprentice Jockeys’ School headmistress, it is an exciting time, with two female apprentices on the riding books.

Britney Wong Po-ni, who became the first woman in seven years to ride full time in Hong Kong when she started out in the 2024-25 season, is also enjoying success and has 29 winners in her local career to date.

“We’re very proud of the girls. I think Nichola has done really well – if there have been any difficulties, she tries very hard to solve it and as a team, we solve them together, too,” Chan said. “It’s very important that they are both in the same class, as they grow together.”

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