Champion jockey Darren Gauci has announced his retirement but will remain a part of the industry as a mentor to young riders.

The 51-year-old will take up a position with Racing Victoria as an apprentice jockey coach early next month.

Gauci replaces Matt Hyland who last month took over the role of chief executive of the Victorian Jockeys' Association.

Last year Gauci completed a Certificate 4 in Training at Swinburne College to enable him to train the aspiring jockeys.

Gauci retires after a career spanning more than three decades and 2500 winners, including four Victorian premierships, three as an apprentice, and 35 Group One victories.

He acknowledged he could have continued riding but said joining RV was too good an opportunity to pass up.

He will join Matt Pumpa as RV's other apprentice coach.

"Long-term it's something that I've always wanted to do and now I've got the job I'm looking forward to working with the team," Gauci told Melbourne radio station RSN927.

"I will miss riding but I've been training for this job for 37 years.

"I'll have to step up. Matt Hyland and Matt Pumpa worked very well as a team and the results are there with the apprentices over the last couple of years."

Gauci rode a number of the superstars of Australian racing including Shaftesbury Avenue, Lonhro and Super Impose and his biggest regret was not being able to win a Melbourne Cup, having finished second three times.

"I was a little unlucky in one of them but the other two had every chance," Gauci said.

"It would have been nice to win a Melbourne Cup. That's every jockey's dream, but I can't complain, I've had a wonderful career."

Gauci begins his new job on February 6 and is likely to have his last rides two days earlier.

DARREN GAUCI:

Age: 51

Apprenticed to Frank King at Caulfield

First Win: Terbla, Bairnsdale, April 1982

Career Wins: 2500 plus

Group One Wins: 35. First: River Rough, 1983 Pure Pak Stakes. Last: El Segundo, 2006 Underwood Stakes.

Melbourne jockeys' premierships: 1983/84; 1984/85; 1985/86 (as an apprentice); 1995/96

Melbourne Cup: Runner-up three times on Chagemar, 1984; Super Impose, 1989; On A Jeune, 2005.

Godolphin colt Astern will be the headline act at the Warwick Farm barrier trials with Omei Sword, who he defeated to win the Golden Rose, to be saved for later in the week.

Trainer Chris Waller said Omei Sword would run in a trial at Randwick on Friday.

The filly is regarded by many as the next Group One star from the stable and Waller expects her to shine in the autumn after her spring carnival was cut short.

Her second placing in the Golden Rose earned Omei Sword odds-on favouritism for the Flight Stakes but she was ruled out with a respiratory ailment.

"She won't run at Warwick Farm but will trial at the end of the week instead," Waller said.

"We've still got a bit of time up our sleeve so she will go to Randwick.

"Her Group One target is the Coolmore Classic which she will go to third-up after the Light Fingers Stakes over 1200 metres and then the Surround over 1400."

The Group Two Light Fingers is on February 11, the same day the Waller-trained champion Winx returns to the races in the Apollo Stakes.

Waller has flown to London where Winx is among the nominees for the World's Best Racehorse awards to be announced this week.

Omei Sword's stablemate Sezanne will run in the first 1000m-trial against Astern on Monday.

The filly ran third to Global Glamour in the Flight but was promoted to second last week with the disqualification of runner-up Yankee Rose because of a positive swab to an anti-inflammatory.

Omei Sword was scheduled to run in the second of the trials on the course proper with Waller still well represented with five runners including multiple Group One winner Preferment.