Racing abandoned at Yarmouth following three races

Rider Gabriele Malune emerges relatively unscathed following fall.

Racing at Yarmouth on Monday was abandoned following three races due to concerns over a false patch of ground.

There was a nasty incident in the third race on the card, division two of the Sky Sports Racing Sky 415 Handicap, as Lord Chapelfield sadly broke down, catapulting jockey Gabriele Malune into the ground.

Maulne was attended to on the track for some time, before being taken to hospital for further assessment – where happily he was to emerge relatively unscathed – while a deputation of jockeys subsequently inspected the turf with officials including clerk of the course Richard Aldous.

Aldous said: “The jockeys were concerned about the mark the horse made when he fell. They felt that the course wasn’t fit in their opinion. You have got to respect their opinion as they are the ones riding on it. We will now have a look at the course and take it from there.

Racing was called off at Yarmouth after the third race
Racing was called off at Yarmouth after the third race (Tim Goode/PA)

“We will have a further look at the course this evening and tomorrow to see where we are at ahead of the meeting that is scheduled to take place on Friday.

“I think it was a unanimous decision by the jockeys and you have to respect that. It was terrible to see. Gabriele has gone to the James Paget Hospital in Gorleston for further assessment. He was awake and talking upon leaving the track.”

He added: “Of course it is always disappointing to call a meeting off midway through, but the safety of our participants must come first.”

PJ McDonald was one of the riders to check the ground, and he said: “We found a patch of ground that was easier to move, with inconsistent ground underneath. We couldn’t tell if that was on a patch where they hadn’t raced yet, so we had to do the right thing and cancel the meeting.”

Amy Murphy, trainer of Lord Chapelfield, was later able to confirm the good news regarding Malune, saying: “Gab rang me two minutes ago to tell me the good news, that he is absolutely fine and that is all that really matters.

“Hearing him say that is the biggest relief of the day.”

The Newmarket trainer had said earlier: “It is devastating for a team of our size to lose a horse, but the main thing that matters is that Gabriele is OK.

“It is one of those horrible things about this game unfortunately. I’m so sorry for the connections of the horse as he was a home-bred and the breeders adored him.

“It is heartbreaking for them and my condolences go out to them.”

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