Canada’s champion Eurico Rosa da Silva, Canada’s two-time champion rider, begins a one-month contract with the Hong Kong Jockey Club tomorrow night at Happy Valley. This morning (Tuesday, 1 March) the Brazilian met media representatives at Sha Tin Racecourse.
Da Silva moved to Canada in 2004 and is based at Woodbine Racecourse. The rider, 40, has twice received the Sovereign Award (2010, 2013) as Canada’s outstanding jockey and earned his championships in 2010 and 2015. His Hong Kong contract runs from Wednesday, 2 March until Wednesday, 31 March.
With previous experience in Macau and Singapore, Brazil’s one-time champion apprentice is keen to get underway aboard his first Hong Kong mount, the Manfred Man-trained London City, in tomorrow evening’s Sham Shui Po Handicap.
“I’m ready for this new challenge in my life here in Hong Kong,” he said. “I’m well-prepared and tomorrow I will start riding. It’s a great privilege to be here and every day I will give my best.
“Success here will be if I focus on the moment, give my best every day and make it so the Hong Kong Jockey Club feels they made the right decision to bring me here. I know a lot of good jockeys want to come here, so for the Jockey Club to give me this opportunity – I want to make them feel like I gave my best in every race.
“I ride a certain way and I will see how I go,” he continued. “I try to be very connected to the horses I ride and see what they want to do; I will do the same here and they will give their best.”
Da Silva rode in Singapore during the winter months of 2007, 2008 and 2009 but it was a four-year stint in Macau prior to his 2004 relocation to Canada that first brought Hong Kong racing to his attention.
“Everybody has a dream in life and my dream has been to ride in Hong Kong,” he said. “When I was riding in Macau I came over to Hong Kong a few times to watch the races and I had no doubt in my mind that one day I would be here. Every time I came to watch I promised myself I would work very hard to come to Hong Kong to ride, so now I’m going to grab this opportunity with two hands and give my best in every way.
“Hong Kong racing is first class, very professional, and for you to be here you need to be the top in every department,” he continued. “If you’re second best then you don’t belong in Hong Kong. For me, it’s a privilege to be invited in to be part of this team.”
Da Silva’s connection with horses is such that he donates a percentage of his earnings to the Long Run Thoroughbred Retirement Society in Canada, a charity dedicated to re-homing and retraining retired racehorses.
“Horses are my life; horses are my god,” said da Silva. “When I have good times or hard times they are with me. I will always donate something to the horses.
“It’s very important that after horses retire from racing they still have a life. I go every year to the farms to visit some horses I support and I feel so happy in my heart to see that they have a great life. It gives you a great feeling just to see the horses in the field playing and having fun. Some horses are ridden and they’re used on the farm and you can see that they are happy. A lot of people in Canada have put in a lot of energy to help retired racehorses.”
Da Silva is known for his catch-phrase “Good luck to everybody!”
“I want to wish everyone good luck and make some money in the race – and have fun, too!” he explained. “It’s not all about making money; the race is fun, it’s that energy, and that’s what matters.”
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