A little piece of racing history was made at the Curragh at the end of last month - a female Senior Steward presided over the Irish Derby meeting for the first time since the foundation of the Irish Turf Club in 1790.
A little piece of racing history was made at the Curragh at the end of last month - a female Senior Steward presided over the Irish Derby meeting for the first time since the foundation of the Irish Turf Club in 1790.
In such a modern racing environment, in which women play a key role in all avenues in the sport, it may come as a surprise that it has taken so long to happen. But, it finally has, and it was not just a first for Ireland, it was a global first.
Meta Osborne, a noted Irish veterinarian, lifelong racegoer, and mother of four, began her two-year term as Senior Steward of the Irish Turf Club last December, becoming the first woman to head a racing jurisdiction anywhere in the world. Now settled in her new role, she has clear-cut, no-nonsense views on racing and how it should be governed.
"The reaction to my appointment has generally been very positive, both at home and abroad," Osborne told me. "I think women bring a different approach to issues, probably more collaborative and less about ego.
"I'd love to see more women in senior positions. I have developed an informal network of support that is really helpful and I think what we need to work on is mentoring the next generation, and my daughters' generation, so that the day comes when the gender of the Senior Steward is no longer surprising," she pointed out.
Those familiar with Irish racing will know that Meta Osborne has an impeccable pedigree for her new position. She is the daughter of the late Michael Osborne, a former chairman at the Curragh and Punchestown, manager of the Irish National Stud, and the man who ran Dubai racing for His Highness Sheikh Mohammed when the Dubai World Cup was inaugurated. Among a catalogue of other achievements, Michael Osborne also purchased Kildangan Stud in Ireland for Sheikh Mohammed - and Michael, too, was Senior Steward.
With such deep family involvement, Meta could scarcely have escaped the racing 'bug.' As a small child, she admits to being "amazed" that Santa Claus, the dual-Derby winner, "could be a racehorse, as well as doing all the other stuff he did at Christmas time."
Her first Irish Derby (as a spectator) was Nijinsky in 1970, and in 1977, while still at school in Ireland, she was given a rare treat. "I remember being given special dispensation from the nuns at school to watch the Cheltenham Gold Cup with Margaret O'Toole, whose father Mick trained the winner, Davy Lad. We watched the race on a small TV set up on the stage of the assembly hall and jumped up and down with excitement," she recalled.
These days, as a full-time vet, her racing excitement is very different. "I get a thrill when I see a winner of a big race, and I know that I was probably the first to 'see' him as a 15mm vesicle on a pregnancy scan. On my Twitter bio, I describe myself as an equine gynaecologist," she said.
"It's probably not strictly accurate, but it is useful shorthand when people ask what I do - and it saves them asking me what they should do about their itchy dog," she laughed.
As for the future, what can be achieved by the Irish Turf Club?
"In the next six months, we will be setting up a Racing Regulatory Body to carry out our integrity functions. With change comes challenges, but I think we can re-invent ourselves as a racing regulator for the 21st century," she said.
