This week on Friday Night Racing, we're looking ahead to a huge Cheltenham weekend. But we were also joined by Nina Carberry.

She's been chatting to Cliona Foley and Johnny Ward about life after racing and more.

She became the first female jump jockey in Ireland and Britain to win a Grade 1 race when taking the Champion Bumper at the Punchestown festival in 2006.

And Carberry brought that successful career to a close after winning the Dooley Insurances Cross Country Chase  in 2018.

"That's what women strive for"

Tonight's Friday Night Racing happened to coincide with International Women's Day. And gender is one area where horse racing has strode ahead in the sporting sphere.

"I think it's the only sport in the world that there's no gender bias," said Carberry.

"If you're good enough, you'll get there. It doesn't matter if you're a girl or a boy. I think in racing, they don't judge you as a girl or a boy. They just judge you on your ability and that's what women strive for.

"It's an industry that to me I've never felt any bias. And the men in it, they respect you and it's nothing to do with being a girl or a boy."

She added that she had even greater respect for jockeys like Rachael Blackmore who didn't come from a racing background.

"Our parents had been steeped in racing," she said of herself and Katie Walsh.

"That was a massive help for us to get going. We were able to show what we could do. But it was all about getting the opportunity at the start."

You can watch the full interview above via YouTube or listen back on the podcast.

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