Jim Johnson (1929 – 25 February 2021) was an Australian Hall of Fame jockey who is remembered primarily for winning the

Melbourne Cup The Melbourne Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Melb ...

on Gatum Gatum in 1963 and twice on

Rain Lover Rain Lover (1964-1989) was a champion Australian Thoroughbred racehorse best remembered for his back-to-back wins in the 1968 and 1969 VRC Melbourne Cup. Background Rain Lover was sired by the good racehorse, Latin Lover (GB) (a son of the un ...

- 1968 & '69.

Career

Johnson is one of the few great jockeys to win the Melbourne Cup three times. He was also noted for his unusual riding style of virtually standing up. He also rode in a strange, jerky way. Despite his unorthodox style, Johnson was often supreme in tight finishes, being one of the strongest whip riders of his time. He won the Adelaide Jockeys Premiership four times, and included wins in the Cox Plate and Caulfield Cup. He was honoured after his retirement as a jockey with riding a tribute lap aboard the New Zealand thoroughbred

Might and Power Might and Power (6 October 1993 – 11 April 2020) was a New Zealand bred, Australian owned and trained Thoroughbred racehorse who was named Australian Horse of the Year in 1998 and 1999. As a four-year-old, Might And Power won the Caulfield ...

around the Flemington Racetrack at the beginning of the Melbourne Cup. He was inducted to the Australian Racing Hall of Fame in August 2009.

Personal life

Johnson lived much of his life in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

South Australia, though after the death of his partner Patricia Delores Mary Prendagast, he returned to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

to be close to his family.

Death

Jim Johnson died on 25 February 2021, aged 92.

References

Australian jockeys Australian Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees Place of birth missing 1929 births 2021 deaths {{Australia-horseracing-bio-stub