“There are young people out there who are invested in the sport and who have ideas and want to help,” says horseracing journalist and university student, Samantha Martin

Samantha works as a Social Media Content Creator for Careers in Racing (CiR) the British Horseracing Authority’s team who implement recruitment, training, education and community initiatives for the horseracing industry. Drawing on her experience as part of the Careers in Racing Youth Collaboration Group, she joined the Youth Panel at the recent Racing Foundation Conference at Ascot.

How did you get involved in racing and then the Careers in Racing Youth Collaboration Group?

I was first exposed to horseracing on Saturday visits to my Grandparents’ house for pretty much all of my childhood. My Grandad used to watch Channel 4 Racing and I would watch with him, doodling pictures of racehorses and, eventually, asking questions. He unfortunately became poorly with Vascular Dementia and my interest started to give him something to smile about. He passed away in 2020, so unfortunately missed my biggest racing achievements to date, but I like to think I am doing him proud!

The interest he inspired in me led to me taking the opportunity to write about horseracing for a website called Rein It In Racing when I was 12 –  a site for young people, by young people. I wrote a range of race previews, interviews and feature articles and got involved with podcasts and radio as a result.

In March 2021, I joined Careers In Racing to create social media content for them, which has involved lots of Instagram takeovers. Pony racing trips are my favourite work to do with them. The Youth Collaboration Group followed and I was eager to join. The group brings together young people, aged 14 to 22 to share their love for the industry. It allows members to have a say in Careers In Racing’s output, both social media and merchandise, and be connected to different opportunities in the racing industry, all supported by the excellent Sean Simara at Careers in Racing, who does the most amazing job. The group contains pony racers, yard staff, aspiring journalists and social media content creators, along with so many dedicated fans. The Youth Collaboration Group is open to anyone, regardless of your background, and I look forward to meeting more members on the track next year! 

As part of the Youth Panel at the Racing Foundation Conference, what do you hope the audience took away from the day?

The Racing Foundation Conference was such a ‘pinch me’ moment for me! It felt like the culmination of so much hard work over the years. I was so honoured to be asked and so grateful to the Racing Foundation team for giving us young people a platform to share our outlook on the racing industry, giving our point of view about some really important and emotive subjects. The girls smashed it and have such massive futures in this industry. I was a bit star struck at first to be in a room with so many big hitters in the sport and horse welfare world, who actually have the power to change the sport for the better.

I really hope the attendees found our insights useful. I would like for them to have taken away with them that there are young people out there who are invested in the sport and who have ideas and want to help. I think a lot of the time people, particularly older racing fans, see young people as hard to please and racing’s attention on them as unnecessary and, even, diluting the raceday product. But  we are the future of the industry and welcoming young people can further the dynamism of the sport and enrich its future.

What are your hopes for the Youth Collaboration group?

I would love to see the Youth Collaboration Group grow to welcome more young people from diverse backgrounds and all parts of the country. It would be great to have meet-ups out at the races to nurture the next generation of passionate racing fans and staff. I hope lots of industry success stories can emerge from the group, too, with youngsters entering the workforce and excelling at their chosen field.

What can racing do better to engage with communities about the benefits of horseracing?

I’m a firm believer that a trip to the races or to a yard works wonders for a person’s mental health and that is so important. There are countless benefits to being involved in racing and I think that is for any person from any background. I think it would be excellent to see racecourses engage more with their immediate communities and local schools, whether that be through discounted tickets or education schemes, like Racing to School. My local track is essentially in the middle of a housing estate, so, to my mind at least, there is no reason why everyone there isn’t at the races for their weekend meetings! In terms of the benefits of horseracing as a career, racing could do more to engage with riding schools and pony clubs to get the horse-loving youngsters into the sport. More bodies through the gates and more people interested in jobs can only benefit the sport.