Superstar jockey Michelle Payne has officially retired

The 2015 Melbourne Cup-winning hero has confirmed to Racing Victoria that she will not be renewing her racing licence.

After a staggering 772 career wins — including that famous Melbourne Cup victory on 100-1 chance Prince of Penzance — Payne has ridden her final race.

Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today

She will now focus on training, using the experience she has gleaned from a career that expanded over more than 20 years.

“I’ve handed in my licence so that’s it for me,” Payne said.

“It was a tough decision to come to and obviously took a lot of time to decide on.

“But I’ve achieved my biggest dream of winning the Melbourne Cup and had my time in the sun.

“I really enjoyed it and obviously loved the competitive side of riding and being out there and being connected with the horse.”

Payne rode her first winner when she was just 15 years old.

But she became a household name in 2015 when rewriting the history books as the first and only female jockey to win the ‘race that stops a nation’ at Flemington.

In 2019 her story was immortalised on the silver screen in a film directed by Rachel Griffiths called Ride Like A Girl.

She has previously admitted those three minutes on Prince of Penzance changed her life.

“It’s amazing to think that one race can change your life as much as the Melbourne Cup has changed mine,” she said.

“It’s incredible to think what one three-minute race has done for my life, and the movie and the opportunities I’ve been able to take from that is mind-blowing.”

Payne has worked as part of Channel 7’s racing commentary team and in various ambassador roles.

She was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in 2021 and was Queen of Moomba, alongside her brother, Stevie, in 2016.

Prince of Penzance horse strapper, Stevie, also shot to fame after the heroics of 2015.

There are 10 Payne children brought up by legendary horse trainer and single father, Paddy Payne Snr.

And now, Michelle is planning more tales of greatness with her other brother, Patrick.

They intend to form a training partnership, and brother Andrew will possibly join the family affair as the Paynes plot a new racing chapter.

Payne has been planning her retirement since May last year, conceding back then that she had been “weaning” off riding for some time.

She rode her last race in March this year, finishing fifth on Pop Quiz at Pakenham.