Early yesterday afternoon, John Size heard he had a licence to train in Hong Kong next season. Within an hour, the 46-year-old Australian had his first offer of a horse to train. Size, based at Randwick in Sydney, has been described as shy, thoughtful, even reclusive, but yesterday he was 'a little bit nervous'.
'At the same time, I see this as a great opportunity to train in a place where it's acknowledged that you have to be good to succeed,' said Size, who will wind up his Sydney operation by the end of this month and then spend a further month organising himself to be in Hong Kong by July 1.
'I really don't know how many horses I will have when the season starts,' he said. 'I expect I wouldn't have that many to begin with, but that is how it usually happens when you go somewhere new. Then it's up to me to make it work and build the numbers. I'll be unfamiliar to the scene, but I'll absorb what I can and see where it takes me.'
Jockey Club director of racing Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said a deciding factor in the Licensing Committee's decision was that Size's style of training looked likely to be suited to Hong Kong.
'We looked carefully at John Size's strength with limited horses which he has been able to upgrade in performance,' he said. 'We also looked at how he runs his horses - they run quite frequently and he is successful with this method. His record overseas is outstanding and we believe he will make a real contribution to the continued upgrading of Hong Kong racing.'
Size has a ready tutor on the pitfalls of Hong Kong racing in his father-in-law, former Hong Kong trainer Neville Begg. 'I have spoken quite a bit to Neville about the place, but Neville was there when there was a different administration and probably a few other things have changed since then,' Size said.
He admits his experience of Hong Kong is limited, even as a tourist. 'I have been there but in years gone past. I've been to the races at Happy Valley once and twice at Sha Tin,' said Size, who will arrive with only his wife, Carmel, despite press reports in Sydney that he would be bringing two of his senior staff.
