Taylor Swift fans distraught at Melbourne Cup scratching - The Age

Sam Siddiqui from Rowville said she was devastated to learn Swift had cancelled her Melbourne Cup appearance.

Not only had she purchased Melbourne Cup tickets to see her pop idol perform, she had also splashed out $300 on a new Cup Day outfit and another $200 on accommodation.

“My heart is literally broken,” said the 25-year-old, who will be demanding a refund on her tickets.

While she managed to get money back on her accommodation, she remains hundreds of dollars out of pocket, having spent $300 on a race day pant suit she no longer needs and cannot return.

“I am really disappointed and shocked ... In the last 13 years Taylor has only cancelled one other show,” she said.

Other fans who planned to fly to Melbourne from interstate have been left with unwanted plane tickets and accommodation bookings.

While a scheduling clash was cited as the official reason for the cancellation, Kristin Leigh from the Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses said Swift had been placed under significant public pressure to cancel her performance.

“Her fans did not want to see her supporting animal abuse,” she said.

“Whilst the reason being used by the racing industry is a scheduling mix up, it appears to us that she has responded to those calls.”

The group was also behind a protest earlier this month in which activists crashed the the world premiere of Ride Like A Girl, a film based on the life of 2015 Melbourne Cup winning jockey Michelle Payne.

Fans were set to flock to the Melbourne Cup to see Taylor Swift perform.Credit:AP

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Australia had written to Swift asking her to pull out of her appearance due to the “cruelty inherent in the horseracing industry”. The group applauded Swift's “compassionate” decision.

“None of this cruelty is consistent with the kind person we know Taylor to be,” spokeswoman Emily Rice said.

The decision could lead to an avalanche of disappointed Swift fans seeking a refund on their ticket.

The Victorian Racing Club (VRC) had earlier this month hailed Swift's Melbourne Cup performance as a major coup that instantly boosted ticket sales to the race meeting.

The VRC said that it had sold almost 20 times the number of general admission tickets after announcing the Swift performance than it had in the days prior.

It is yet to announce a replacement act for Swift or reveal how many disappointed fans have sought a refund, with the customer service office not due to open until Monday morning.

The star was rumoured to have been offered $1 million to perform, a figure justified by the boost she would bring to worldwide exposure of the race.

Cup Day attendance topped 100,000 every year from 2005 to 2015, but dwindled to just 83,471 last year.