Te Akau Team Member of the Month

Te Akau's latest "Team Member of the Month" has been announced for June - congratulations to - Kate Belsham.

Kate is a stable-hand at the colt barn on the Matamata Racecourse, but also very versatile in the office and social media. 

“She is a very good all-rounder and integral member of staff,” said trainer Jamie Richards. “Kate can take horses to the races, run the colt barn, has administrative skills: preparing my owner updates, managing our Instagram account, she is adept in many facets of the business, and very competent for her age. She came to us a year ago and just had her 18^thbirthday in the last six months. 

“It's great to have these good people in the industry, but also important we have these young people, like Kate, coming through. Kate shows a very keen interest in the racing, loves going to the sales and being involved in the yearlings, and of course strapped dual Group One winner Yourdeel.”

Kate Belsham:

I enjoy the variety in my job.  Working with the horses, helping in the office, taking photos, social media, travelling horses to race, and I like doing different things. 

I saddle horses in the mornings,  help Scott (Lucock) and Mette (Mosebo) with treatments, and in the afternoons I either help Lena (Jones), Libby (Richards) and Jamie (Richards) in the office or working in the colt barn.

I like the dedication of the people I work with and that want to get the best out of the horses. I like working here because there are lots of opportunities, great support, exciting new horses coming through and a high quality of thoroughbreds to work with. 

They all have different personalities and with a majority of our horses coming through from the sales then the yearling prep and all sales preparations are vital. It does make a huge difference to their life as a racehorse if they have been well prepared.

All of our colts are nice to handle when they come in,  but obviously some have to be gelded in time and that's just the nature of the business. 

We have a really good team spirit amongst the staff and good initiatives that everyone helps each other out. Trying to get the best out of the horses is what everyone's main goal is and if we continue to work together then we will achieve that. We also have team get-togethers and meet for breakfast.

I think the communications we provide for owners is massive.  Lena does such an amazing job in the office, producing, collating, and sending all Jamie's information out to owners. It's a really high standard and nothing is missed. There are always updates and photos, videos, and audio comments straight from Jamie. And owners are always welcome to come and see the horses whenever, and I think we do everything we can to make it enjoyable and informative for the owners.

David (Ellis) is a very entertaining boss.  Him and Karyn are very supportive and obviously want the best for everyone in the team. Not only does he want the results but he wants us to be a part of it all and enjoy the success too. 

David has been a big part of my growth and development.  A year ago I was still at home (Wanganui), came up for an interview and here I am. 

Strapping Yourdeel (pictured) to win two Group Ones and my season in general with him has been the highlight and pretty incredible. He's such a special character and probably the coolest horse I've ever come across, and the fact that he tries so hard every single time. He calls out to every horse that comes past and he definitely knows what his job is. He's keen, plays around, and loves all the attention, but also grumpy at the same time. He's got a hundred different moods.

Other favourite horses of mine are Pris De Fer, Queen of the Air, and the yearling Pins colt out of Cerberus. He's good to deal with and a nice type. And the Savabeel - O'Dianne yearling colt is very nice. They'll have a couple of jump outs, now in their second prep and get ready for a trial. Most of the yearlings are on their second prep now.

I was bred into the racing industry.  My dad (Paul) was a trainer and may still be the youngest jockey to win a Group One race in New Zealand. Granddad was a jockey and then a trainer, and Mum's side of the family was also into racing. My great-granddad trained a horse in the Melbourne Cup. I've always been around horses. 

Everything is within a close proximity to Matamata,  so I like that. It's a short drive to Tauranga, Hamilton, Rotorua, and I've got family in Tauranga and Auckland. 

“Te Akau Racing is fortunate to have such good staff and it pays off in the results we achieve,” said Principal David Ellis. “Jamie has trained 97 winners this season, 18 stakes' wins including seven Group Ones, and Mark (Walker) leads the premiership for Te Akau in Singapore. 

“I keep telling people that because our people love horses they're prepared to get up at 3.30 a.m. in winter and summer, rain, hail, and shine, six days a week. 

“We create opportunities for young people with horse experience to get involved in a thoroughbred business that we try to run as professionally as we can, and also employ people that have spent their careers working in the industry and bring enormous amounts of experience.

“Karyn and I introduced this award as way of saying a huge thank you to our team from ourselves and all of our owners who appreciate that their horses are given every opportunity to fulfil their potential.”

The team member of the month receives a cash prize and the overall winner for the year will receive an all expenses paid trip for two to the Gold Coast.

Back