From Flemington to Royal Ascot, the crown ruler of Dubai to the Queen of England herself – international jet-setting jockey James McDonald has met them of all.
Based in Sydney, the 23-year-old Kiwi already has a number of achievements under his belt.
Paul Henry wanted to find out just how glamorous a life of a jockey really is; McDonald joined him in the studio this morning, where he said he didn't always want to be a jockey.
"From the age of about 10, I wanted to be a dairy farmer, but I thought how am I going to make money to buy a dairy farm?"
So he entered the racing industry and now has more than 1000 wins to his name.
"I had a good start to my career," says McDonald. "From when I was an apprentice to my father to having a wonderful run through the New Zealand racing ranks.
"I then got an opportunity to shoot over to Sydney and ride for John O'Shea."
Watch the video for the full interview with James McDonald.
