An amateur jockey who learned to ride at a club for inner city kids is today hoping to rein supreme at one of the world’s top racecourses.
Khadijah Mellah, 18, will line up at Goodwood beside Olympic cyclist Victoria Pendleton and model Vogue Williams.
The teen, who first sat on a racehorse four months ago, will join a field of 12 riders in charity ladies race the Magnolia Cup.
And she will become the first Muslim female jockey to ever compete at the prestigious course.
Excited Khadijah said: “I know it sounds weird, but you don’t understand how fast they are until you’ve sat on one.
“But I’ve put in a lot of hard work – riding out two or three times a day, as well as time in the gym, so I feel like I’ve learned the ropes.”
The youngster took up riding at Ebony Horse Club in Brixton, South London – a charity that helps disadvantaged children.
She added: “I don’t really get too nervous, but it will be incredible to line up against the likes of Victoria Pendleton.
"I’ve been to the races at Newmarket a couple of times so I have a better idea of what to expect.”
Khadijah, of Peckham, has just finished her A Levels and is set to study mechanical engineering at university.
She proudly returned to the Ebony Horse Club in her jockey silks to show how far they had got her.
She said: “There’s a stereotype of Muslim girls not being able to follow their sporting dreams.
"I want to be a role model to anyone who wants to do something that’s not in their comfort zone.”
Khadijah’s journey as a jockey will feature in documentary Riding A Dream, due out in the autumn.
Last year Mirror sports secretary Sarah Cook finished second in the five-and-a-half furling Magnolia Cup, riding Ian Williams-trained Misty Birnam.
