He is one of the most decorated jockeys in Indian horse racing history and now Suraj Narredu is on the cusp of perhaps one of the finest moments of his over two decade long journey.
The 40-year-old jockey from Bengaluru will be leading Team Asia at the prestigious Shergar Cup, the iconic annual racing feature, at the famed Ascot Racecourse in England and Narredu could barely contain his excitement while sharing the news.
"It is on par with the best moments of my career. It is something like a pinnacle. If you've been told that you have been riding at the Shergar Cup, there are a handful of jockeys, 12 jockeys are competing from all over the world. And if you have been picked then it is a very, very big deal to come and ride with the best jockeys of the world. It is not like a typical team sport or something. For me, individually to represent India at the Shergar Cup is a huge deal because the last time India was represented was in 2009 where my uncle (Mallesh Narredu) had represented the country. I had gone to see the race with him. From 2009 to 2025, life has come a full circle," he added.
Talking about his racing journey, Narredu reminisced about the tough yet thrilling early years of his career.
"My dad and uncle were both jockeys earlier. Both have ridden a 1000 winners and now both of them are horse trainers. Obviously, having grown up in a horse racing family and seen my father and uncle go to the races. I started riding as a hobby and not professionally. Then I would do showjumping and other equestrian events and then I slowly started developing an interest in horse racing because that's when I started understanding the game. But my parents were a little skeptical because its a very, very tough sport."
"I got my apprenticeship jockey licence in 2002. For the first 3-4 months I never won a race and I thought maybe I'm spoiling the family's name and I thought of quitting the sport. I felt this was not my cup of tea. Luckily, for me in the following week I had two winners when I was in Mysore and I was still an apprentice. Then following week two winners and another two. Then, it was no stopping me."
But, once the initial hiccups were overcome, Narredu was unstoppable.
In the next five months, I had 40 winners. So I went from the apprenticeship to a senior jockey level after I did that. In 2004, I was invited to represent India in Macau at the International Jockeys Championship where all the young jockeys in the world would be present. I was supposed to represent India that year but unfortunately there was an outbreak of a disease called the SARS which disrupted my plans. By 2010, when I was eight years since getting the licence, I rode a 1000 winners."
The racing star also described about the one moment that potentially altered the course of his life.
"My dad had got a VHS tape where an Italian jockey had won all 11 races in a single card. That's when I decided this is what I want to do and that's when my journey began. So this VHS tape really sealed it for me when I was contemplating a racing career. It was definitely a sort of trigger," he added.
At the Shergar Cup, there will be 12 jockeys fighting it out in five races each out of the six races, according to Narredu.
The racing star also dwelt a bit on his preparation in terms of fitness and diet.
" I'm very particular about my fitness and diet and everything anyway. I have my two days of Pilates and two days of Cardio so one day before the race I don't strain myself with exercises etc. Any jockey's diet is a strict diet. In the last three months, my focus is on August 9th and my exercise routine increased or changed a bit. As we are getting closer to the date, more focus has gone on diet and fitness. I want to go in with full confidence.
With regard to taking the legacy of his family forward, Narredu had this to say:
"It is very simple. My greatest hero in all of this is my dad. He never misses a day at the racecourse. He wakes up at 4 am and is at the racecourse by 5 am. Never misses for anything. He has been my inspiration all through. Learning that kind of lifestyle you know what to have some days off. Everyday's work you need to go. Good, bad, ugly or whatever."
Narredu stated he does not have a great deal of expectation from the Shergar Cup and hopes to win atleast a race and make India proud.
" I have no expectations. I know its going to be a fun day. Its a beautiful event. But for us jockeys, its going to be a normal race. A prestigious race. Only five can be won. if I could win a race and get atleast one race for India, nothing like it," he added.
