 | BBC TV's Rishi Persad: Known as 'Dishi' to his fans |
Horse racing isn't the first thing that springs to mind when you think about Trinidad and Tobago - in fact it's probably the last.
White beaches, clear blue water, cricket and Dwight Yorke all rank somewhat higher.
But the truth is that racing is something of a passion in the Caribbean, which in Barbados' Sir Michael Stoute boasts one of the sport's top trainers.
Little wonder then that Trinidadian Rishi Persad, one of the BBC's new recruits to its TV racing team, grew up wanting to be a jockey.
Rishi's parents owned a stud farm on the island, and he was first put on a horse at the age of three.
Any delusions that he could have made it as a top jockey were shattered a few years later, when he was left eating sand by one of the family's feistier rides - but his love for the sport remained undimmed.
"Racing in Trinidad and Tobago is huge, and there used to be three courses on the island," Rishi told this website.
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"I was brought up around horses, and one of the first foals my parents trained, called Comaneci, turned out to be rather good."
The Persads enjoyed varying degrees of success throughout the 1980s, with a number of winners to their name.
How this fine racing pedigree fits in with Rishi's notoriously dodgy tipping is anyone's guess - but he seems less concerned about the bookies, and more about spotting a future Mill Reef.
"My main pleasure from the sport comes from seeing good horses race," he says.
"Every year another great horse emerges - and the thrill is being there when it happens.
"This year we've seen Alamshar win the Irish Derby and the King George, and who knows - he could be the next greatest horse in our generation?"
Most importantly - of course - he is enjoying working with the BBC racing team after a spell with the Attheraces channel.
Despite being given a variety of jobs, including one of the hardest gigs around - having to interview punters around the course (often with Craig Doyle in tow) - Rishi says he has enjoyed the experience.
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"I grew up watching the Morning Line on Channel 4, and I must admit that when I started working with them I thought I had reached the pinnacle," he says.
"But having seen the skills of Jim McGrath, Clare Balding and the rest of the team I have to say I feel very privileged to be part of the BBC set-up.
"I honestly don't think there is a better presenter out there than Clare Balding - she is amazing to work with.
"And I think having worked with the team now at Royal Ascot and Glorious Goodwood we are all blending as a unit and get on well, on and off camera."
Which is probably something most of the team would have agreed with, until about 1702 on Friday 1 August - the penultimate day at Glorious Goodwood.
On Rishi's advice ("it's a dead cert to win") certain members of the team laid down vast sums on Taaqaah in the 1700.
Taaqaah finished sixth.
Rishi was last seen running away towards his car, but will return in front of the camera at all the BBC's live race meetings throughout the coming year.
You can email Rishi via the link on the right - he'll answer your questions and dish out some top tips during our racing coverage.
MMIX
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