As memorable as it was, that incident, dubbed “rakegate”, was outside of Kelly’s control, and it has been noted that what hasn’t gone wrong during his time in charge are the types of reputation damaging, race fixing and corruption scandals that plagued Hong Kong racing in the 1980s and 1990s. There has not been an Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) inquiry into manipulation of races during Kelly’s tenure.
We could try and describe Kelly’s professional demeanour – the words forthright, direct and intense come to mind – but perhaps it is best just to say that his WhatsApp avatar is a picture of Darth Vader. Some people choose cute pet photos or food pics. “I am a Star Wars fan, but I think he has a character whose personality I identify with,” he says of the choice.
Former Jockey Club chief stipe John Schreck called the role of chief steward ‘a lonely job’ and although Kelly admits he knows where one of his famous predecessors in the role is coming from, he adds, “If you want to do a popular job, go work for the Red Cross or something.
“You don’t do this type of job to win popularity contests, we have got to be the voice of punters, the voice of owners,” Kelly says. “We have got to do what we do to protect those groups and protect the reputation of racing here and the reputation of the club. That is what we do and anything less than that would not be acceptable.”
Pressure. For the stewards it comes from everywhere in Hong Kong racing; officials, media, punters, trainers and jockeys. Even the city itself – busy, noisy and sweltering, and in recent times boiling over with political tension or locked down and restricted due to Covid – has its way of testing character. Kelly came to embrace it, just as he did criticism.
The local racing media in Hong Kong can be relentlessly savage and many times Kelly was in its crosshairs. One memorable campaign in Apple Daily included a cartoon depicting Kelly as a Buddhist monk, cradling Zac Purton, swaddled in an Australian flag, absolving the jockey of his ‘sins’ in a bathing ceremony. “I’ll take care of my Australian mate,” the caption inferred in Chinese.