Alderson to be honoured with new award

Newcomers to training ranks will be honoured at the upcoming Victorian racing awards.

Trainers with less than seven years experience and under the age of 40 will be vying for the Colin Alderson Rising Star Award on August 25.

Alderson, who recently retired after almost 40 years as a trainer, received a Medal of the Order of Australia in June's Queen's Birthday honours.

He trained 11 Group One winners including the 1999 Caulfield Cup and Australian Derby winner Sky Heights.

Alderson was also a mentor to emerging trainers and spent more than 30 years as a committee member, vice president and president of the Australian Trainers' Association.

"I'm truly honoured that the industry has seen fit to recognise my career on and off the track with the introduction of this award which I hope grows in prestige over years to come," Alderson said.

"The continual injection of new horsemen and women into our training ranks is vital for the industry's on-going success and I'm delighted that we will acknowledge the achievements of an emerging trainer each year."

The awards to be announced on August 25 include the Scobie Breasley Medal for jockeys, the Fred Hoysted Award for trainers and the Victorian Racehorse of the Year.