Ever wondered what sort of people take the Apprenticeship in Racehorse Care route? We caught up with Charlie Richards who completed the course at The British Racing School (BRS) in 2016 to find out about his new career as a Stable Lad at Andrew Balding Racing…
Introduce yourself..
“My name’s Charlie Richards, I’m 19-years-old and from Croydon in Surrey. I have been working at Kingsclere for Andrew Balding for 2 and half years since graduating from the BRS.”
Tell us about your education and career so far…
“I attended Carshalton Boys’ Sports College and didn’t begin riding until I was 16.
I had grown up watching plenty of racing on the tv but I was playing football with my two brothers at a younger age. I didn’t have the same passion for football as I did for horse racing so attending the BRS was the best decision I’ve ever made.
The highlight of my career so far with Andrew Balding was leading up Shine So Bright owned by King Power Racing in the 2,000 Guineas, having watched it on tv when I was younger it was surreal to have accomplished such a dream so early on in my career”.
What BRS course did you do?
“I did the Foundation course, and started in August 2016 for 14 weeks. After successfully completing this I was offered a job at Kingsclere, start my Apprenticeship in Racehorse Care – I started here on the 6th December 2016 and love it.”
Why did you choose the BRS?
“Newmarket is the home of racing and I wanted to gain experience and learn from the best place possible”.
Did you have any racing experience prior to attending the BRS?
“I did some work experience with Simon Dow at Epsom. I am very grateful to Simon for giving me the opportunity to start my career with him.”
What are your plans & aspirations for the future?
“The plan is to stay in racing for as long as I can. I am very passionate about the horses I look after and I love going racing. My dream would be to ride in a race or to become a jockey.”
For more information on what the BRS could offer you visit www.brs.org.uk where you can find details on all the courses on offer and the Open Day dates or email careers@brs.org.uk
My Racing Career – Charlie Richards
- Published on 1st July 2019
