Spotlight On: James Orman

By Brodie Nickson

James Orman has enjoyed a year he will likely never forget after the star hoop booted home 201 winners across the 2022/23 season.

Twenty-six-year-old James Orman rode two winners at the Sunshine Coast to close off the season, including his last ride aboard Vetta Velocita.

It was a fitting season finale for Orman as the Stuart Kendrick-trained gelding demolished his opposition by three lengths.

Orman notched up a whopping 104 metropolitan victories - finishing third nation-wide behind James McDonald (123) and William Pike (112).

He also rode 93 provincial winners in 344 rides, striking at 27 per cent.

With the Queensland Metropolitan Jockey Premiership sewn up early, Orman had turned his attention to riding 200 winners in the season and found himself locked in a thrilling head-to-head battle with New South Wales hoop Aaron Bullock for the Australian Jockey Premiership.

The pair were locked in a gripping tussle for weeks to close off the season.

“I was leading (the Australian Jockey Premiership) for the majority of the year, then Aaron Bullock came out of nowhere and turned it into a mad battle the last few weeks,” Orman said.

“My main goal was just to win the Metropolitan Premiership, but I decided to give myself the added goal of the Australian Premiership when it became an achievable result.

“I don’t usually travel to Ballina and the other country areas, but I really want to give this premiership a shake and take every opportunity.”

The race brought great interest and national attention to each jockey and their rides.

Unfortunately, Orman fell three-and-a-half wins short of Bullock, who rode 11 winners in the last four days of the season to secure the premiership.

When asked if there was any secret to his great success, Orman was very humble in his reply, paying tribute to his wife, Heidi, his children and manager Glen Courtney.

“I don’t know, it has just been a great season. Getting good support really helps,” he said.

“I have two beautiful kids, Floydy and Hallie, and I love them both to death.

“When I am not riding I am with them.”

Orman also paid homage to Courtney who “does a great job”.

“He is all over (booking rides), which is great because I don’t need to worry about it, I can just jump on and ride,” Orman said.

Riding freelance, Orman is sought after by Queensland’s leading stables, in particular Chris Waller and Tony Gollan.

Gollan, who brought up his 10th consecutive Queensland Metropolitan Trainers Premiership this season, developed a lethal partnership with Orman.

The pair combined on 138 occasions in the 2022/23 season, for 34 winners at a 24.6 per cent strike-rate.

One horse in particular set tongues wagging across Australia as Redwood gelding Antino stamped himself as a potential superstar.

The five-year-old has won eight of ten career starts and is so highly respected by TAB, the bookmaker installed him as $5 second favourite for the Group 1 Toorak Handicap and $8 joint-favourite for the Group 1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes.

It follows a sensational Queensland Winter Carnival from Antino, which culminated in a three-length romp of the Listed Wayne Wilson at Eagle Farm.

“He is an awesome horse. He is probably the best horse I have ridden. He is a machine,” Orman said.

“He just wants it (to win) and just finds a way to get there.”

Antino’s thrilling win at Doomben at the end of December last year was a clear indication of the horse’s supreme ability and competitiveness.

The gelding overcame a slow start to settle at the rear of the field in a 1615m Benchmark 72 at Doomben, producing a brilliant 32.72 last 600m to round the field and win.

“That win was pretty unreal, you never see them win like that,” Orman said.

“To run sub 33 the last 600m and come from last, you don’t see that.”

Riding at Flemington or Caulfield is a long way from the origins of Orman's career west of Brisbane.

Orman grew up in Gatton, a 90-minute drive from Brisbane.

It was an easy introduction to racing for Orman as his mother, Caroline Allardyce, still trains horses.

The pair even combined in July of 2014 at Doomben where Orman recorded his first metropolitan victory as an apprentice aboard his mother’s horse Iniquity.

Orman, 17 at the time, had just left high school and decided to throw all his energy behind a career in the saddle.

“I was actually still at school when I started race riding,” Orman said.

“I remember Mum was actually going to make me finish school. I had my first ride in year 11 I think, I rode through all of that year and started year 12, but it was getting too hard.

“I was missing too many meetings riding and Mum would never let me leave school, but I told her I would buy a house by the time all my mates finished school and that is what happened.

“I bought a house when all my mates graduated from school.”

In addition to school, Orman, a highly talented gymnast, had to choose between his two big passions at the age of 15.

“I was getting to the point where I was doing the trials and I was at gymnastic competitions looking to represent Australia at gymnastics,” he said.

“It basically got to the point where I missed out on the Australian team one year and I was pretty devastated I missed out, especially because the year before I was meant to represent the country as well where I actually qualified, but I was too young to go on the team.

“So I had to wait until the next year, but unfortunately when that time came around I stuffed up my vault and that basically cost me going to America for gymnastics.

“I was devastated and after training for only a few months I decided to give it away and be a jockey full-time.”

Still only relatively new into his career, the rapid rise of James Orman has seen him become a fan favourite across Queensland and will no doubt lead to him drawing more national attention in the coming years.