Lyall Appo 'overcame an impoverished and difficult start to...establish his riding career. He grew up in the small town of Eidsvold, Queensland, where Aboriginal people were just being allowed to move back into town.' Lyall Appo and his brother Bradley Appo (q.v.) were the first people from their community to be taken away by the government.
Appo 'began his life as an apprentice jockey at Toowoomba.' During his racing career he rode against some of the top riders in racing. Appo gave up his riding career to become a boxer and he won the 'national straw-weight title.' Source: Aboriginal Stars of the Turf: Jockeys of Australian Racing History (2003)
