CAMDEN, S.C.--Taylor Kingsley has had a very busy and very successful summer, and she is currently leading the Fegentri series of invitational races for amateurs.
Taylor Kingsley on Chinese Empror in Sweden Photo by Fegentri)Kingsley, daughter of top steeplechase trainer Arch Kingsley, has traveled the world to compete in Fegentri races while still riding races for trainers in Ireland, the U.S. and her father as well as riding morning works for her father.
Along the way, she has ridden five Fegentri races, winning three in Germany, Norway and Sweden.
Most recently,, she rode races in Ireland for trainers Shark Hanlon and Dennis Hogan,finishing with two fourths and a seventh.
Kingsley flew back to this country yesterday, July 9, drove to Colonial Downsn, where she worked a horse for her father and drove north after that to be ready to ride a horse tomorrow, July 11, at Delaware Park in an Arca race, an Amateur Riders Club series that is this country's stepping stone to Fegentri.
"The riding's not difficult," said Kingsley. "Horses all speak the same language. The difficulty is more with the traveling and communication with trainers when the language is different. The races are all different, too, from dirt to turf, long and short. There's no bell in the gate like there is in this country."
KINGSLEY is flying next to France to ride in a Fegentri race in France on Aug. 2.
"I absolutely love it," said Kingsley. "I'm getting to ride places where I couldn't ride unless I was a top jockey. My body is getting used to the traveling."
While Kingsley is leading Fegentri now, there are still 16 races left in the series, and, as they are all invitational, she doesn't know how many more she may get to ride in.
Along with all that, Kingsley sometimes steps in to train her father's horses at one track whole Arch travels to train his horses at another track.
She was scheduled to go to Saratoga in June after her race in Sweden to replace her father while he traveled back to Camden to ready his string there for races at Colonial, but that was cancelled when she got the call to ride in Ireland.
"Ireland was just spur of the moment," said Kingsley. "I just got back from Ireland, drove to Colonial , got on one for my father, and I'm on my way to Delaware."
Kingsley started her career riding flat races at steeplechase meets for her father where she won countless races.
She had her first ride at Fedentri Don Yovanovich, Executive Director of the Amateur Riders Club of America, chose her at the last minute to ride last fall in Morocco.
In a press release from the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation, Yovanovich wrote:
"When you are an Executive Director of any sporting organization, you are always on the lookout for new talent. So was the case of Taylor Kingsley. I know both of her parents and have watched Taylor grow up riding and competing in pony races. Within a year she began winning point to point races and competing in Training Flat races for her dad. In November of 2022 I listed Taylor for an Amateur race at Laurel Park.
"Although she finished eighth, her demeanor, attitude and abilities were all very evident. In fact, she said to me, "I know I can do this. I want to win the Fegentri Championship." That is a huge goal, as it is an international competition and lasts an entire year.
"One of final races in the Fegentri year was approaching on November 11, 2023. For some reason several of the invited riders declined their invitation. I was asked if I would like to send an extra rider to Casablanca, Morocco, for the Ladies World Championship race. Any points she should earn would not count, but they needed another rider. Why not, let's send Taylor for the experience.
"Well, it wasn't just experience she got, she got the win too. And she got the attention of the entire Fegentri world. It was love at first sight. No more questions asked, Taylor got the nod as the American representative for the 2024 Fegentri Ladies World Championship Series.
"For Taylor her year started in May, flying to Magdeburg, Germany. A well-planned ride, then executed perfectly provided her with a solid victory to prove Morocco was not a fluke. First win.
"Norway came next at the Ovrevoll racecourse; a horse named "Slay the Dragon" provided Taylor with her second win. Suddenly the first set of rankings of the year were posted and the American was second in the early competition. She went to France, picked up a point riding a long shot then set off to see what her luck could bring her in Sweden.
"Taylor is a student of the game. She is very mature for a girl in her late teens. She is also a very determined athlete and has a keen sense of pace and a strong finish. Her draw in Sweden had not run well for a while and had moderate odds to win. Never to be discouraged, Taylor worked out a strategy and rode the horse to her third win and the number ONE spot in the rankings. (photo, at top, of Taylor riding CHINESE EMPEROR to the win in Sweden courtesy of Fegentri)
"Taylor is on a very good road to a successful year and perhaps making that goal come true, not just for her but also for that Executive Director," said Yovanovich..
