Meet Hayley Hassman
Growing up in Hamilton in a non-horsey family, Hayley Hassman’s introduction to horses came through a school holiday riding camp during her primary school years. She was quickly hooked, taking up riding lessons before getting her first taste of the racing industry through a weekend job with Cambridge trainer Chris Wood. From there, Hayley worked for Stephen Marsh before joining the New Zealand Equine Academy at Byerley Park, where she learnt to ride trackwork and completed her Level 1 and 2 Equine Skills.
After returning to the Waikato and working for Shaun Phelan, Hayley took out her amateur licence and began race riding in 2023, with success in the Amateur Rider Series helping ignite her ambition to become a jockey. A stint riding trackwork in Melbourne followed before she returned to New Zealand and joined Te Akau Racing, where she is now apprenticed to Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson.
Part of the inaugural Elite Jockey Programme intake, Hayley has quickly established herself as one of the country’s exciting young riding talents. She was recently awarded the Taiki Yanagida Trophy - Most Dedicated to Success at the Northern Apprentice Jockey Awards
