Former high profile Sydney jockey Gordon Spinks is making an excellent recovery after major heart surgery at Brisbane’s Princess Alexandra Hospital. The seventy three year old underwent a triple bypass procedure which was completed without incident, but temporary respiratory complications kept him in ICU for almost a week. He returned to his Sunshine Coast home over the weekend and is in high spirits.
Gordon won 2 apprentices premierships. One of his winners in that era was the good mare Lucifina.
Gordon’s heart issues first surfaced more than a decade ago when he was working on a cattle station at Blackall in Queensland. He underwent surgery in Brisbane where three stents were inserted to combat narrowing of the coronary arteries. “The stents did the job for a long time but more recent blockages urgently required bypass surgery,” said the multiple Group 1 winning jockey.
Apart from a couple of “bumpy” rides on a neighbour’s pony, Sidney Gordon Spinks was a raw novice when he answered a newspaper advertisement placed by legendary trainer Theo Green. He proved to be a natural and quickly blossomed under the tutelage of the master mentor of apprentice jockeys.
Black Onyx was the first horse to win the Doomben $10,000 in consecutive years. Gordon rode him in the second one in 1970.
Gordon struggled with his weight during a relatively short career but managed to ride close to 1000 winners including a number of races which today have Gr 1 classification - Doncaster (Unpainted), AJC Metropolitan (Wiedersehen), Epsom Hcp (Citadel), Rosehill Guineas and QTC Derby (Dark Briar), Doomben $10,000 (Black Onyx), Champagne Stakes (Anjudy).
He had no greater fan in Sydney racing than T.J. Smith who asked him more than once to consider linking up with Tulloch Lodge. Gordon preferred to freelance with the top stable, but did accept a retainer to act as number 2 jockey for Stan Fox’s burgeoning Rosehill empire where Jack Denham was head trainer. The top riding spot was held by Athol George Mulley who’d long been Gordon’s role model.
Gordon Spinks modelled his style on that of the great George Mulley. This picture shows the similarity.
Spinks had short stints with Dermot Weld in Ireland, Sam Armstrong in England and towards the end of his career joined a small group of Aussie jockeys who were offered contracts in Iran. A new racecourse had been built in Teheran and many Australian and NZ horses had been purchased by local owners. The experiment evaporated as quickly as it started when the Shah of Iran was overthrown in the 1979 revolution. “It could have been a smashing success but once again politics got in the way,” said Spinks.
Gordon wins a midweeker at Randwick on the Tom Flanagan trained Tasrana.
Gordon’s “stablemate” during his apprenticeship to Theo Green was none other than Ron Quinton with whom he formed a great friendship. A recent quote from Ron best sums up his talents. “Gordon was a champion apprentice who went on to become a senior rider of great skill.”
We’ve inserted below a link to a recent podcast with a man who was one of the best jockeys of his generation.