Ballarat's Leticia Griffin is set to become the first female Clerk of the Course in Melbourne Cup history

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She told The Courier it was a pleasant surprise when she was informed of the appointment.

"When I got the news I was a bit shocked. It didn't feel real that's for sure," she said.

"I thought maybe I'd get a chance Oaks Day being a female and they usually send a female.

"To get Cup Day, let alone Cup week was very exciting."

Becoming a Clerk of the Course was not Griffin's first objective, initially undertaking a jockey apprenticeship.

After 18 months of training, including 180 rides and four wins, that was put on hold when in July 2018, Griffin was diagnosed with stage-three melanoma.

Following the beginning of her treatment that October, a phone call from former chairman of the Australian Jockeys' Association Des O'Keeffe trying to keep her involved in racing led her to begin training to become a Clerk that December.

"Racing being a big community, they wanted to keep me in the industry and I wanted to stay in it so this was the next best thing," she said.

"I've always admired the Clerks and I just thought that would be the ultimate job basically ... it's a little bit earlier than expected but I think it's something I'll probably do forever."

Clerks play a significant role, holding the responsibility of ensuring a safe course.

"Being a Clerk, we basically make sure all the horses and jockeys get around from the mounting yard to the barriers safely," Griffin said.

"We're sort of there to pick up any horses or jockeys or be the first of call if something happens."

For the past three years, Griffin has worked as a trainee, the last 12 months seeing her work at big race days at Flemington, Moonee Valley and more.

Now, she will work on the biggest day of them all, Melbourne Cup day.

"I think I felt more nervous doing my first meeting at Flemington let alone going into spring carnival, at least I've been there a few times and it's a bit more comfortable," Griffin said.

It is not always easy going, however, despite Griffin's lifetime spent around horses.

"You have your days, don't worry," she said.

"Training horses is always interesting, you might not always get what you expect on the day but that's about being a Clerk and having the horsemanship skills to control your own horse and others."

Griffin hopes that her appointment to the Melbourne Cup will inspire other females to follow in her footsteps.

"It probably was male dominated but probably the last five years there's really been an influx of females, same in being a jockey," she said.

"...I think it's a pretty even playing field now.

"To get the chance to go to the Melbourne Cup I think will inspire a lot of people to get into the job and be dedicated."

Griffin said the lure of her jockey career still lingers but with opportunities like the Melbourne Cup being offered, it is hard to step away.

For now, she will continue as a trainee Clerk of the Course as well as running her business, L J Griffin Retraining, where she retrains off the track thoroughbreds including Freshwater Reset (Jack), who she will ride at Flemington today.

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