A Life in Horse Racing: Loving It, Living It, Leaving It
I wasn’t always a photographer. Long before I picked up a camera, I was completely immersed in my first love - training racehorses. The horse racing world meant everything to me: early mornings at the stables, the rhythmic sound of hooves on the road, and the electric buzz of race day.
So, I Wasn’t Always a Photographer…
I wasn’t always a photographer. Long before I picked up a camera, I was completely immersed in my first love - training racehorses. The horse racing world meant everything to me: early mornings at the stables, the rhythmic sound of hooves on the road, and the electric buzz of race day. In today’s post, I’m sharing a glimpse into that chapter of my life - the one that came before photography, but still shapes who I am today.
I wanted to become a Veterinarian when I was a kid.
I've always had a deep love for animals. As a kid, I was absolutely certain I’d grow up to be a vet. To me, being a veterinarian meant spending every day surrounded by animals, helping them when they were sick, and making a real difference in their lives.
Volunteering at the Singapore Zoo
That love for animals led me to my first real opportunity when I was just 10 years old. The Singapore Zoological Gardens offered a volunteer program for young zoo keepers - and I jumped at the chance. I started working in a section called the “Children’s Zoo Adventureland,” which was designed especially for kids. It had a playground, and most of the animals were friendly, pettable farm animals. I’d spend every weekend there, both Saturdays and Sundays, completely immersed in it.
I moved to bigger animals
After a few months, once the senior zookeepers got to know me, I was allowed to help out in other parts of the zoo - sections where I could be around giraffes, tigers, and ponies. I was in heaven. I loved it so much that, I’ll admit, I even skipped school a few times just so I could spend more time at the zoo!
The world of Horse Racing beckoned.
Then, when I was 14, a new door opened. I discovered that one of my uncles was a racehorse trainer at the Singapore Turf Club. The moment I found out, I couldn’t stop thinking about it - I begged my dad to speak to him and ask if I could help out during the school holidays. Thankfully, my dad agreed to ask, and my uncle said yes. That’s how I landed my very first job in the world of horse racing - as a syce, or better known as a "horse groom" in western countries. It was the start of something that would shape the rest of my life.
As a syce, I was responsible for everything related to a horse. I cleaned it, fed it, took care of the stables, got it ready for morning workouts, and even led it on race days. I was like the horse’s full-time caretaker. The pay was tiny, but I didn’t care. I loved every second of it.
And that’s where my childhood dream of becoming a vet quietly ended. I had fallen in love with horse racing. Not just the horses - but the energy, the competition, the adrenaline rush of a win. The feeling of ecstasy when your horse wins a race is an indescribable feeling. One I know most people would never experience.
From syce to stable supervisor.
From there, I worked my way up. I went from syce to stable supervisor to assistant trainer. At one point, I was the youngest assistant trainer at the Singapore Turf Club - I was just 24 years old when I got my assistant trainer's license. Racing had become my entire world. I lived and breathed it.
As an assistant trainer, I had the incredible honor of being part of a stable that was crowned champion of Singapore and Malaysia seven times - a milestone I’m truly proud of. But beyond the titles and trophies, what really made the journey extra special and memorable was the chance to travel the world with our horses. We raced in places like Perth, Hong Kong, and Dubai. We didn’t bring home international wins, but for me, it was never just about standing on the podium.
What mattered most was the connection I had with the horses, the pride of representing our team and country abroad, and the excitement of competing alongside some of the world’s top trainers, jockeys and horses. Each experience deepened my passion for the sport and strengthened my commitment to it. I poured everything into those moments - and with every race, I felt one step closer to my dream of becoming a professional trainer in my own right.
But then life took a turn.
My boss decided to move his operations to Macau, and I saw it as a golden opportunity to learn more before going solo. So I packed up and moved too, planning to stay for just 2 or 3 years before returning to Singapore.
That return never really happened.
After two years in Macau, I got another offer—this time at the Selangor Turf Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I moved countries again and continued working as an assistant trainer.
Something had started to shift.
By that time, I had spent nearly 20 years in horse racing. I loved animals - especially horses, and I was passionate about the sport. But by then though, I had seen a lot. I had witnessed the struggles up close, particularly in Singapore and Malaysia, where many trainers were drowning in debt. (That’s a story for another blog post.) Despite my deep love for horses and the thrill of racing, I had grown disillusioned with the business side of it all. After three years in Kuala Lumpur, I made one of the hardest decisions of my life: I walked away.
It was tough. Horse racing had been my entire life and career. It was all I knew.
But I knew it was time. I was still young enough to start a new career and I didn't want to waste this period of my life.
And so ... I left the world of racing and started a new chapter - as a photographer. And as they say, the rest is history.
As much as I’ll always love horses and the world of racing, leaving was something I had to do - for my own growth, family, and future.
The Singapore Turf Club, Macau Jockey Club, and Penang Turf Club all shut down within two years of each other.
I could never have imagined it at the time, but the Singapore Turf Club officially closed its doors on 5th October 2024. Just months earlier, the Macau Jockey Club held its final race on 30th March 2024, followed by the Penang Turf Club ceasing operations on 31st May 2025. As much as I had hoped these closures wouldn’t come to pass, they ultimately affirmed the decision I had made to leave the industry. They reinforced what I had long believed - that horse racing and horse training had become an increasingly difficult and unsustainable business. These clubs had been operating at a loss for years, if not decades, before their eventual shutdown. And it is my own view that these clubs may not be the last to shut its doors.
Although it’s been over fifteen years since I stepped away from the racing world -and with the Singapore Turf Club now gone - the memories, knowledge, and experiences from those days still linger with me. That chapter of my life left a lasting mark. There is an old saying in racing that goes like this: You can take a man out of racing but you can never take the racing out of the man. And that is why every now and then, I will write about racing when something in the world of horse racing sparks a memory or feels meaningful enough to written about.
I only have a handful of photos from my horse racing days - and most of them aren’t of the best quality. They were taken on old point-and-shoot film cameras, back when digital photography was just starting to make its way in. Still, these images are treasures to me. There aren’t many, but each one brings back a part of my life that shaped who I am today.
And that brings us to the end of my story about my very first career. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed sharing it with you. 😊 Now, it's time for me to head back to my world of photos and videos - but thanks for taking this little trip down memory lane with me.
