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Legendary jockey Felix Coetzee was forced to finally announce his retirement a few weeks short of his 55th birthday after having tried every means possible to overcome the problem of wear and tear to his hips.

Such was his determination to return to doing what he loves most that he even attempted a comeback after a recent hip replacement operation.

However, the veteran of 3508 wins will not be lost to racing.

“Because of my love of horses, I want to stay in the industry,” he said.

Coetzee’s was born into racing. His grandfather Felix was an owner-trainer, his father Hennie

was a trainer, as were all four of his uncles, Cookie, Felix, Gert and Lookie.

He joined the South African Jockey Academy in the early 1970s and his first winner was aboard Royal Drummer, trained by his father with whom he served his apprenticeship. His first major win was on Kentford in the Clairwood Winter Handicap in 1975.

Coetzee will forever be remembered as a true professional. Whatever he lacked in natural talent

he made up for with a work ethic second to none, a well-honed racing brain and renowned strength and rhythm in a finish.

He was trusted implicitly by the owners and trainers he rode for and invariably developed good relationships with the horses he rode.

In the case of two of the best, Silent Witness and Rocket Man, the partnerships became virtually inseparable bonds.

Coetzee gained worldwide fame when he rode Silent Witness to 17 wins from 17 starts in Hong Kong.

Coetzee built a similar bond with Rocket Man and it was under him that the Singapore speedster finally broke his international G1 duck in Dubai after four near misses.

Coetzee will look back on two major turning points in his glittering career that saw him crowned South African champion jockey three times and ride 75 G1 winners in five different countries

including three Durban Julys, a record eight Gold Cups, five J&B Mets, two Summer Cups and two Hong Kong Derbys.

After being transferred to the powerful yard of Theo de Klerk in his fifth year of apprenticeship, he wasn’t getting many opportunities as second choice to the lightweight Dana Siebenberg.

However, legendary Natal stipendiary steward and family friend Jock Sproule, on a visit to the Cape, advised him to stick it out.

On the back of that pep talk, Coetzee made the decision to simply work harder and his big break followed when offered the position of stable jockey to Terrance Millard.

Millard, with Coetzee as his first-call stable jockey, dominated South African racing the 1980s and early 1990s when his achievements included wining the Durban July six times in eight years.

Coetzee won the July, the country’s premier race, for the first time on was Devon Air in 1984 but regards the 1990 July winner Illustrador as the best Terrance Millard-trained horse he rode.

“Mr Millard had us all very committed. There was a terrific amount of discipline in the yard but once he trusted you he didn’t put pressure on you and this allowed us to ride positively and confidently,” Coetzee said.

Before leaving for Hong Kong, Coetzee became associated with the brilliant Tony Millard-trained Empress Club, and he rates her in his top three alongside Silent Witness and Rocket Man.

Coetzee’s next turning point happened at probably the lowest moment of his career while lying injured in a hospital bed towards the end of his sixth season in Hong Kong.

His Hong Kong career had until then been inauspicious when to his amazement Tony Cruz, a six-times champion jockey who was enjoying early success as a trainer, paid him a visit and offered him a retainer.

Coetzee helped Cruz win the HK Trainer’s Championship in 1999/2000 and the partnership also landed him the ride on Silent Witness.

Coetzee’s eight Gold Cup wins is one of the most dominant riding performances in the same feature race in world racing history.

This race has always been meaningful to him as his late father won it in 1948 with Lochiel and a replica of the trophy has for many years been one of his most prized possessions.