Since 2015, Natashia Radford has worked as a judge for Racing Victoria, the state’s first female in the role and a position that has, for nearly 200 years, been dominated by an older male demographic.
“Before I got this gig with Racing Victoria, I called them every month for over a year to be given a go. I had set up a calendar reminder,” she tells The Straight. “But I’ll make it very clear that they were just waiting for a position to become available. I don’t think it was because I was a woman.”
Traditionally, raceday judges have hung around in their roles for decades, and Radford had to be persistent. When she began beating a path to Racing Victoria for a job, she had spent two years in a similar role at Racing NSW, but the dearth of women in her chosen department didn’t help.
“You have to be persistent, and I would say that to other women,” she says. “But I’m like that with everything in life. If you just sit back, nothing will happen for you.”
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