3 months ago
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Her Melbourne Cup-winning ride on Half Yours was celebrated for its courage and timing.
She bumped husband Ben Melham’s horse Smokin’ Romans to the side and weaved her way through several tight gaps in the home straight before winning by more than two lengths.
“When you are on a horse you trust 100 per cent, you are confident to take those gaps,” Melham said.
Blake Shinn falls during the Hong Kong Jockey Stakes on Melbourne Cup day.Credit: Nine
“I wouldn’t do that on just any horse. I would only do that and take those sorts of runs on a horse such as Half Yours.”
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Racing Victoria stewards interviewed Melham on Melbourne Cup day but adjourned the inquiry until this week.
They found Melham had allowed her horse Fancify to shift out when not sufficiently clear, causing interference to She’s Got Pizzazz.
Melham declined to discuss the incident when approached by this masthead the day after the Melbourne Cup.
Shinn posted a message on X on the night of the fall, saying: “Thank you all for your kind messages after my fall. I’ve broken my leg and will be sidelined for a bit, but I’m very grateful that She’s Got Pizzazz is okay.”
She’s Got Pizzazz, trained by Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman, was found to be lame in the off foreleg after the race and will need a veterinary clearance before being allowed to race again.
Melham was suspended for three weeks on the eve of last year’s spring carnival after being found guilty by the Victorian Racing Tribunal for failing to give her horse, Let’sfacethemusic, every chance to win or run a place in a group 3 race at Caulfield.
The tribunal found that Melham should have taken a gap between two horses in the home straight to improve her chances of winning the McNeil Stakes.
Melham pleaded not guilty to the charge, telling the tribunal that Let’sfacethemusic was a difficult horse to manage, the horses in front of her were shifting around, and the wind gusts were so strong they shook TV cameras.
‘Racing back and thriving’
The Victoria Racing Club said 286,746 people attended this year’s Melbourne Cup week carnival – the largest crowd to have flocked to Flemington since 2018.
The VRC said more than half of general admission tickets were sold to people under the age of 35, a 17 per cent increase on last year.
TV audiences were also up. More than 2 million people watched the Melbourne Cup, while 5.5 million Australians tuned into Nine’s coverage across Melbourne Cup week.
“The success of the 2025 Melbourne Cup Carnival has emphatically demonstrated that racing is back and thriving,” VRC CEO Kylie Rogers said.
“With our largest crowd since 2018, record-breaking wagering turnover on Lexus Melbourne Cup Day, and significant uplift in broadcast figures, the momentum and energy throughout the week was infectious.”
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