Spotlight On: Emily Lang

By Brodie Nickson

When you speak to Emily Lang, there is a smooth air of respect and humility in her voice.

The 23-year-old has caught the attention of fellow jockeys, trainers and punters as she enjoys a tremendous start to her career.

Currently under the tutelage of powerhouse trainer Tony Gollan, Lang currently sits third on the Queensland Jockey Premiership for 2024/25.

Earlier this year, she had outridden her country and provincial claim, forcing the apprentice to town ahead of schedule.

“We were planning on waiting until the start of the new season to utilise my 3kg claim in town, but we decided we had to go now,” Lang said.

It is hard to believe for many watching Lang’s natural skill that she is the jockey who almost never was.

Lang didn’t grow up around racing. In fact she didn’t step foot onto a racetrack until she was 19 – it was at the Gold Coast.

Instead, Lang developed her impressive horsemanship with a long eventing education.

“I grew up doing pony club and all of that during school,” Lang said.

Raised in Rockhampton, Lang focused on showjumping and eventing, sprinkled in with a little bit of campdrafting on a rare occasion.

“I certainly think the foundations I had growing up where my parents paid thousands of dollars on horse lessons for me, I learnt riding fundamentals and had a great foundation before I set foot near a racehorse,” Lang said.

“I know some people jump aboard their first horse at the racetrack and that seems crazy to me these days.

“I am just so lucky to be brought up in a family that had horses.”

After graduating high school, Lang opted to take a two-year gap year in Sydney and brought a horse she had previously enjoyed a lot of success alongside.

“The people that I was working for had eventing and showjumpers, but also did pre-training on the side, so I began riding pre-training for Matthew Smith as well,” Lang said.

“When I returned to Brisbane to commence my university degree, I was looking for a part-time job and Munce Racing was advertising for trackwork riders and it went from there.

“I started doing the short 400m jump outs for Chris (Munce) and got into it that way.”

After a few semesters at university, Lang opted to defer her Bachelor of Business and Data Science and turned her attention to riding.

“(Being a jockey) wasn’t really something I originally thought I was going to be able to do because I was a bit heavier, and in my head I pictured jockeys to be the stereotypical build. That wasn’t me at that age,” Lang said.

“It was a bit of a shock to my family when I did come out and say I wanted to be a jockey.

“They were all very iffy at the start, but now my brother has a syndicate (One Syndication), sauna businesses for jockeys to sweat in and my parents have shares in racehorses now, so it is very funny to think about.”

Listening to Lang there is no hiding the sense of appreciation she shares for her family, stable, manager and support network.

She especially could not speak higher of her former bosses, Eagle Farm trainers Steve O’Dea and Matt Hoysted, and their invaluable education.

“When I had my first race ride, Steve (O’Dea) and Matt (Hoysted) bought two horses off Inglis Digital for me so that I had a couple of rides for the stable on the day,” Lang said.

“I think they spent around $30,000 or $40,000 on horses just for me to punch around at the non-TABs, and also spent money on a mechanical horse for me so I could learn how to pull my stick on raceday.

“They also made sure that I did about 100 trials and jump outs before I went to the races so I knew what it was all about and what to expect raceday. It really helped me out!

“You only have to do about 20 to get ticked-off by the stewards and I was still getting left behind in the barriers by then, so I am glad they made me stick around and do a few more.”

The investment of O’Dea and Hoysted also ventured off the racetrack, with the pair just two of many tremendous influences on Lang.

“[O’Dea and Hoysted] were both also very good at watching my rides and going through what I did well and what I could be doing better,” Lang said.

“I was lucky I also had the likes of Ben Thompson who would also ride gallops for the stable and gave out little hints.”

Fellow jockey Jordan Mallyon and retired hoop Robbie Fradd are two others Lang also has great appreciation for, alongside her manager, Mitchell Speers.

“Robbie Fradd comes to the races with me every week and has a meeting with me every Monday where we go through the previous week’s rides,” Lang said.

“My manager, Mitchell Speers, is also very good at form and talking tactics with me.

“He is quite good at picking rides. One ride I had at the Sunshine Coast a while back and was 100/1, he said to me ‘I would go out thinking that it can win’, he thought it was a good chance and it actually won.

“He is very good at picking that stuff up as well. I am so lucky to have so many people helping me improve.”

Although many apprentices start at a much younger age, Lang credits her later start as being a benefit.

“I think getting into riding a bit later you are that little bit more mature, you have a lot more goals set out for what you want, and you have a better base of experience to deal with the pressure put on you,” Lang said.

“I know heaps of (jockeys) get a foul message on Facebook or Instagram if you have a bad day, so I think when you are a little bit older you can also deal with that pressure a bit more.

“Especially in Queensland you are given your money straight away when you ride winners, and it is definitely a good thing to be that little bit more mature when you’re earning good money at a young age.”

Looking towards the year ahead, Lang has a couple of clear goals in mind.

Cejay Graham locked up the 2023/24 Queensland Metropolitan Apprentice Jockey Premiership and Lang has now turned her attention towards taking out the 2024/25 title.

Angela Jones, Kyle Wilson-Taylor, Justin Huxtable and Baylee Nothdurft are the previous four winners and Brisbane’s riding ranks show no signs of slowing.

Bailey Wheeler, Tahlia Fenlon and Lang are the early favourites.

“Definitely, [winning the apprentice premiership] is something I want to do,” Lang said.

“I tried hard to be able to take out the provincial title this season gone, so hopefully I can hang onto that.

“The likes of Angela Jones and Cejay Graham have come through the previous years and it is very hard to ride winners (in town) against the likes of Ryan Maloney and James Orman, who are the best of the best in Queensland.”