In a career that extended 30 years, Frank Dempsey won the majority of Australia's important races. He was widely regarded as a supreme stylist of his profession.
As an apprentice Dempsey had a remarkable record. In 1915, at the age of just 16, he won the Caulfield Cup on Lavendo. In 1917, he won the Caulfield Cup again on Bronzetti. That same year he won the Memsie Stakes, Australian Cup, Gimcrack Stakes, Epsom Handicap, and Maribyrnong Plate. In 1920, he partnered Eurythmic, for a third Caulfield Cup win at the age of 21.
Dempsey was associated with many great horses. He rode Eurythmic in 20 of his wins, including the Futurity Stakes, Caulfield Cup and Sydney Cup. On champion filly Frances Tressady, he won the 1923 Victoria Derby- VRC Oaks double. On Whittier, he won the Doncaster Handicap and a succession of weight-for-age races. And in 1925 he took the mount on the rogue horse, Manfred, winning the Cox Plate and Victoria Derby and running second to Windbag in the Melbourne Cup. He won the Victorian jockeys' premiership five times and rode with success in England, winning over 40 races during the 1926 season. Dempsey retired from the saddle in 1939, and subsequently became the starter for the VATC and the MVRC.
Dempsey was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2008.
Image Source: Australian Racing Museum Collection