It was a fascinating trip, ... I learned a lot that will be beneficial to our students. Practically every country involved in horse racing requires some licensing. We have the best racing, the best horses, and the best farms, yet we have no school.

I never make a trip to the United States without visiting a supermarket. To me they are more fascinating than any fashion salon.

I think it's a golden opportunity for someone who wants to become a race rider to capitalize on by getting an education from a group of people who have been there, done it a long time and are not trying to pull the wool over their eyes so to speak.

There are a number of riders in the jocks' room here who have what it takes to be leaders, except that they're maybe a little too quiet,

This is truly a historic opportunity for all facets of the horse-racing industry. Never before has there been a program of this kind in the United States. This academy will allow jockeys -- and eventually all those interested in the horse-racing industry -- to develop career pathways that will allow them to reach training and educational goals they never knew were possible.

It's unfair to the trainers to have a smaller pool of truly skilled and talented riders at their disposal.