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There’s something wrong with this photo of Michelle Payne. The champion jockey should be holding the Melbourne Cup aloft, not posing next to it in a sunny dress and straw hat.
Instead of grasping the trophy, Payne struggles to decide where to place his hands and how to adjust his legs; With the help of stylist Alicia Marshall, there’s a comb and mohair brush at the ready outside the frame.
Michelle Payne wears Leo Lin and collects the Melbourne Cup trophy at Flemington Racecourse.Credit: Simon Schluter
“I met Michelle at a time when she didn’t really have her own style,” says Marshall. “I tried to take him on a journey to discover that.”
It’s been 10 years since Payne’s unforgettable Melbourne Cup win aboard Prince of Penzance and he is determined to master his new role as ambassador for Victoria Racing Club.
Within 10 years, Payne’s style evolved from jockey silks to haute couture by Melbourne tailors Jason Grech, Vivienna Lorikeet and Alin Le’ Kal. For a long time, the fashion parade in the Birdcage enclosure and the Fashions of the Field stage were on the wrong side of the tracks. Now he gets paid to be in the spotlight in both areas.
“The Birdcage looks like a lot of fun when you’re in the jockey room,” says Payne. “On the other hand, you can’t enjoy it, especially when you’re trying to keep your weight down.”
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