Whether as a jockey, trainer or mentor to apprentices, horse racing has been Ron Quinton's life.

The popular horseman has been recognised for service to the industry, awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) on Sunday.

Champion Sydney apprentice in 1967, Quinton went on to claim the jockeys' title eight times winning. He won 46 Group One races, including four Golden Slippers, and rode champion Kingston Town to the second of his three Cox Plates.

When he retired from the saddle he moved into training, celebrating his first elite victory in 2000 when Easy Rocking claimed the Salinger Stakes.

But it is Quinton's mentoring of young riders which separates him from his peers.

He has helped guide the early careers of top jockeys such as Hugh Bowman, is the master of last season's champion Sydney apprentice Sam Clipperton and also sits on the Racing NSW Riders Skills Panel.

He is giving of his time and expertise, taking young riders under his wing and helping them to navigate a difficult and dangerous profession.

It is a role which sits well with him.

"Those things give me immense satisfaction," Quinton said.

Inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame in 2006, Quinton has also been a NSW ambassador for the National Jockeys Celebration Day, helping to raise funds for the Jockeys Trust that supports seriously injured riders and their families.

He said being awarded an OAM was a "shock".

"I feel humble about it," Quinton said.

"Racing's been my life, it's been my passion. I don't know anything else."

Quinton believes the NSW racing industry is in a healthy position supported by excellent prize money levels, although he would like to see increased co-operation between administrators and participants.

"But overall, the industry is in a pretty good place," Quinton said.

He plans to spend Australia Day at his Randwick stables attending to his horses.