South African jockey Greg Cheyne, winner of the International Jockeys Challenge last year, is back to defend his crown in this year’s edition at Sungei Besi this weekend.

After ending his riding stint in Singapore, Cheyne rode with great success at Sungei Besi last year, booting home 16 winners. His appearance this weekend will be his first in Malaysia this season.

Four new faces to the local circuit are among 12 jockeys invited for the five-race series this year and the star among them is undoubtedly Japanese jockey Ryuji Wada.

The 36-year-old has seven Group 1 wins to his name including the Group 1 Japan Cup with T. M. OPERA O in 2000. The pair also won the Group 1 Arima Kinen (Grand Prix) the same year. Licensed by the Japan Racing Association, Wada has ridden 885 winners.

Johnathan Parkes, currently third in the New Zealand jockey with 110 winners, is another new face.

The 25-year-old has more than 400 wins, including this year’s Group 1 New Zealand Oaks on MISS MOSSMAN and the 2013 Spring Classic on RANSOMED, his first Group 1 success.

Italian jockey Pierantonio Convertino, 29, has booted home 1020 winners and is currently riding in Qatar. His biggest to date is the 2013 Doha Cup (the Prix Manganate) for Arabian breds on MUNTASAR which was run at Deauville in France.

Renato Souza de Jesus, 33, rode 121 winners in his native Brazil, including two domestic Group 1 races, before moving to England where he has chalked up 125 wins. However, success in the saddle has been hard to come by recent seasons. He rode just three winners last year and has only one win to his name this season.