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Danielle Johnson will return to action this week ahead of an international venture that will combine business with pleasure.
The 25-year-old has been side-lined with a fractured bone in her right hand suffered when she parted company with subsequent Sydney winner Romantic Maid in the Gr.2 Championship Stakes at Ellerslie last month.
Johnson will have three rides at Matamata on Wednesday - Margin Call, All The Drama and Outsmart - with the trio trained by her partner Stephen Marsh.“I can’t wait to get back, but whether they all start will depend on the track,” she said.
Johnson’s domestic comeback will be short-lived as she has snapped up an invitation to compete in a female riders’ series in Sweden.“I certainly didn’t mind being asked!” she said. “We will be leaving on the 13th of June and it’s a four race series.”
The jockeys’ challenge will be held at Bro Park, a newly-built training centre and race course where the international side will feature Hayley Turner and Mary Jo Bell (England) and Cathy Gannon (Ireland) against a team of local riders.Johnson and Marsh have also taken the opportunity to travel further afield after the international series.
“We leave Sweden on the 20th of June for London and then we’ll have four days in Paris and on to the south of France,” she said. “We’ll be back in the first week of July.”Johnson has ridden over 600 winners in New Zealand with 86 of them this term to place her in third spot on the premiership, in which she finished runner-up behind Matt Cameron last season with a career best tally of 135.