Samyn retires from riding, takes out jockey agent license

by Brisnet.com

Jean-Luc Samyn celebrated his 55th birthday on Sunday by taking out his

license as a jockey agent, retiring from a riding career that spanned more than

30 years on the New York Racing Association (NYRA) circuit.

"It is the right thing to do," said Samyn, who will be representing Filiberto

Leon in his return to riding at Aqueduct. "I had said that if I was able to walk

away [from riding] when I was 55, that was the time to do it."

Samyn, who began riding in New York in 1976, won his first stakes race in

1978 aboard Jaipur's Gem in the Grade 2 Carter Handicap and in the ensuing years

won dozens of stakes at Aqueduct, Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course. Samyn

said he considers the highlight of his riding career to have come on a single

weekend in October of 2000, when he won the Grade 1 Turf Classic Invitational

aboard John's Call, the Grade 1 Flower Bowl Invitational with Colstar and the

Grade 2 Kelso with Forbidden Apple.

"That was better than fabulous," Samyn said. "To win two Grade 1 races on one

day, and then to come back the next day and win the 'little' $250,000 race was

icing on the cake."

Known for his prowess aboard turf horses -- one well-known betting angle was

"Samyn on the Green" -- he retired having ridden 2,613 winners of $94,135,156.

After suffering the loss of two fingers on his right hand in a snowblower

accident earlier this year, Samyn curtailed his riding considerably and compiled

a mark of 4-5-6 from 81 starters in 2011.

"It's very exciting to move on," he said. "Filiberto and I have been making

the rounds and have gotten good feedback. He's looking to work hard, and so am

I."