Fred Kersley has been awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the Australia Day Honours for his service to racing, a recognition he described as a “very big surprise.”
Fred Kersley became the first Western Australian to hold a dual licence to train both pacers and gallopers, bridging the complementary worlds of harness racing and thoroughbred racing. He recorded his first victory at Perth’s Belmont Park on 19 July 1989 with Little Hero, but it was the champion Northerly who truly cemented his reputation as an elite thoroughbred trainer.
Kersley readied Northerly for success in 2000 at the Group One WA Railway Stakes, before the duo travelled east three months later to capture the Australian Cup in Melbourne, setting a record time over 2000 metres.
The Melbourne Spring Carnival of 2001 again showcased the formidable Kersley–Northerly partnership, with four starts yielding four emphatic victories. The campaign reached its pinnacle with triumph in the Cox Plate at Moonee Valley, a win Kersley himself regards as the finest of his career, given the race’s iconic weight-for-age status.
