South African jockey Jarred Samuel has been offered a four month riding contract in Seoul, Korea. 

Samuel, a 27-year-old who was previously based in Durban, has ridden 103 winners since debuting in 2004 and was in Seoul watching the races this past weekend. He is available for rides from this week.

Able to make 50kg weight, Samuel will be looking to get more opportunities than some of the other foreign jockeys who have ridden at Seoul in the past.

Samuel will be the fifth South African jockey to ride regularly in Korea (many others have participated in the Seoul International Jockey Challenge). Chris Taylor and Stephan Swanepoel weren’t given many chances during their times at Seoul several years ago although Martin Wepner and Gerrit Schlechter both fared much better in their stints at Busan.

A huge football fan, he will no doubt fit in well in Korea as his favourite team is Manchester United, although he has pledged to attend some K-League too. 

Extracts from Korearacing