Tag Archive for: Injured Jockeys’ Fund

Lauren Keen-Hawkins moved to hospital in Gloucester

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Amateur jockey Lauren Keen-Hawkins has been moved to Gloucester Royal Hospital as her recovery continues.

The 22-year-old sustained a serious head injury in a fall at Worcester early last month after partnering Kim Bailey’s Faerie Cutlass, who came down three flights from the finish in the concluding handicap hurdle.

She was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham by ambulance following the fall and admitted to critical care before moving onto a ward.

Now the rider has moved to Gloucester Royal as a return home is discussed.

An Injured Jockeys Fund statement said: “Following her fall and subsequent head injury at Worcester Racecourse on September 1, amateur jockey Lauren Keen-Hawkins has been transferred from the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham to the Gloucester Royal Hospital where she continues to make steady progress with her rehabilitation.

“She is mobile with assistance, and although confused from time to time, her mental functioning is improving.

“Lauren’s family anticipate she will be discharged from hospital in the relatively near future to continue her recovery at home and with Out-Patient Therapy from both the NHS and the Injured Jockeys Fund. They would like to thank everyone for their kind messages of support for Lauren.”

Lauren Keen-Hawkins moved out of intensive care

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Amateur jockey Lauren Keen-Hawkins, who sustained a head injury in a fall at Worcester on Sunday, has been moved out of intensive care.

Keen-Hawkins is a key member of Kim Bailey’s team and was partnering the Andoversford handler’s Faerie Cutlass when they came down three flights from the finish in the concluding handicap hurdle.

The 22-year-old was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham by ambulance following the fall and admitted to critical care, but has now been moved onto a ward.

Bailey reported on Thursday that his assistant Mat Nicholls had visited the rider in hospital.

Writing on his stable website blog, he said: “Mat went to Birmingham to visit Lauren Hawkins yesterday and was pleased to see how she looked.

“Lauren has been moved out of ICU and into a ward and although still not fully conscious, she does seem to recognise voices and mentioned the odd words.

“She is improving and although she has a long way to go, the signs are positive.”

Bailey added: “I must say again how wonderful the Injured Jockeys Fund and their team have been to Lauren’s family. Their support has been brilliant and hugely appreciated.”

Keen-Hawkins had previously ridden Faerie Cutlass to finish second at Worcester in July, while she enjoyed a winner at Cheltenham aboard Dandy Dan at the track’s hunter chase night in April 2022.

The fall that sparked creation of Injured Jockeys Fund

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It is 60 years since a serious injury to Paddy Farrell in the 1964 Grand National helped spawn what is now the Injured Jockeys Fund.

At the time there was no system in place, financial or otherwise, to compensate jockeys whenever they were injured and Jack Berry, at the time a jump jockey himself who would go on to be a successful Flat trainer, was one of the riders to literally go round with collection buckets.

Farrell’s fall from Border Flight, while awful for all concerned, did at least provide a catalyst for change. Tim Brookshaw was another jockey to suffer serious injury at around the same time and the Farrell/Brookshaw Fund was set up originally to facilitate their recuperation before the pair asked that all jockeys should benefit.

John (Lord) Oaksey took on a prominent role, as did Berry.

As well as a driving force behind the IJF, Lord Oaksey (centre) was one of three journalists enlsited to help in the return of Shergar along with Peter Campling (left) and Derek Thompson
As well as a driving force behind the IJF, Lord Oaksey (centre) was one of three journalists enlsited to help in the return of Shergar along with Peter Campling (left) and Derek Thompson (PA)

“I do appreciate how good the facilities are now but it all started way back in 1964,” said Berry.

“Poor Paddy Farrell fell and broke his back in the Grand National. I was one of the jump jockeys who went round with buckets to collect money for him and if you like that was the start of the Injured Jockeys Fund.

“In those days there was nowhere for people to look to and he had a wife and four young kids at the time – they were seven, five, three and five months old. It was a bad situation.

“I had a bad fall at Wetherby when I broke my knee in five places and despite me conning my local doctor after three months to say I was fit, the Jockey Club doctor said there was no way I could ride, it only bent about 60 per cent.

“He asked me to go to Camden Town centre in London to rehabilitate. When I went there, along with me there were five dockers and a policeman but obviously they were just trying to drag it out as long as possible, I was the only one there who wanted to get better.

“I thought when I packed up riding and became a trustee of the Injured Jockeys Fund that we could do with a facility like Camden Town. It took me three years to get it past the trustees that we needed Oaksey House (in Lambourn) but when we got it past the trustees, I always thought we needed one in the north.”

The one in the north is known as Jack Berry House and while the man famous for wearing red shirts is a little embarrassed the facility carries his name given it was down to the work of so many, he admits to feeling a sense of pride at the outcome.

“Once I suggested it, I was told it was only six years since we opened Oaksey House but I said ‘don’t worry, we’ll raise the funds’ and with the help of the IJF, we held things like bungee jumps, sponsored swims and walks, all sorts to get the money,” he said.

“I did say to the trustees that we shouldn’t call it Jack Berry House we should call it Our House, but it is something I am very proud of and I’m absolutely delighted with it.

“It’s not just for injured jockeys, it’s a community hub if you like. Someone like Brian Hughes might ride out in Malton, go and use the gym there and then head off for six rides at Wetherby or somewhere.

“The wives of ex-jockeys still go and do Pilates there and have a cup of tea and a bit of a chat.”

Hopefully in the future Graham Lee may be a regular visitor to Jack Berry House.

It was 20 years ago that Lee won the Grand National on Amberleigh House before he switched his attentions to the Flat, going on to register a unique double by steering Trip To Paris to triumph in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot.

Sadly, Lee suffered a fall at Newcastle in November which left him with life-changing injuries.

“You wouldn’t believe how many jockeys get injured. When you go down there, there are jockeys with broken collarbones and all sorts, it is a very dangerous profession,” said Berry.

“Look at Graham Lee, the poor lad is seriously injured. With Graham hopefully there might be scope for some more movement returning. He can move his shoulders and his neck.

“Graham is going to visit a rugby player who broke his neck, he has a rehabilitation place near Leicester and he’ll go there for a couple of weeks and then he’ll go home after the alterations have been made to make it wheelchair friendly. No doubt he will go to Jack Berry House to have physio eventually.”

Lee ‘overwhelmed’ by support following Newcastle fall

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Graham Lee has thanked the racing community for their support as he begins to make plans to move home following the injuries he sustained in a fall last year.

The Grand National and Group One-winning jockey was unseated by his mount when leaving the stalls at Newcastle in November.

He suffered a serious spinal injury and the sport has rallied around him and his family since, raising over £188,000 via JustGiving for the Injured Jockeys Fund.

Currently at the Spinal Unit at James Cook University Hospital in Middlesborough, Lee is planning to adapt his house in order to move home and released a statement via the IJF.

It read: “It’s three months now since my accident and I thought it was appropriate for me to say something publicly for the first time.

“Frankly, I’ve been overwhelmed by the unbelievable support and good wishes sent by everyone and I’d like to thank you all so much on behalf of myself, my wife Becky and our children, Amy and Robbie.

RACING National
Graham Lee winning the 2004 Grand National on Amberleigh House (John Giles/PA)

“It feels like I’m in a bit of a bubble here at the James Cook Spinal Unit but the girls share with me all the messages that they are receiving and every single one is appreciated, as is the support of my great friends who continue to visit me so regularly and keep my spirits up.

“I never really considered that I had achieved that much as a jockey and it seems crazy that so many people are thinking of us all. I can’t deny it has been – and continues to be – hard for us all, but these messages help us all so much.

“I would also like to thank the team of nurses here who are just unbelievable in the around the clock care and support they offer us all.

“As most of you know, the injuries I have suffered are life-changing and there is a long road ahead. But we have just received planning permission so that work can start to adapt our home in the hope that I will be able to leave hospital at some stage in the next few months.

“Thank you again. I am truly humbled and grateful.”

Blackmore ‘serial winners fund’ closing in on bumper total for charity

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Betfair’s ‘Rachael Blackmore Serial Winners Fund’ is closing in on its target as it aims to provide £250,000 for two worthy charities.

The initiative was kick-started by a £100,000 donation from Betfair, with £5,000 added for every Blackmore winner ridden between Betfair Chase Day in November last year and the Grand National at Aintree in April.

The target sum is £250,000 and with several weeks still to go there is already £155,000 in the pot before the upcoming festivals at Leopardstown, Cheltenham and Aintree.

The funds raised will benefit the Injured Jockeys Fund and the Irish Injured Jockeys, both charities that support current and former riders on either side of the Irish Sea.

Blackmore, an ambassador for Betfair, said: ‘It’s fantastic to see all the amazing work the Injured Jockeys Fund does to support jockeys at facilities like Oaksey House (in Lambourn).

“This is a very generous initiative from Betfair, one that will benefit the Irish Injured Jockeys too, and will go a long way to creating more support facilities, in both UK and Ireland.“

To illustrate the need for the backing of such valuable work, Betfair sent tipster Daryl Carter to Oaksey House in Lambourn for a special edition of their ‘Coaching Carter’ series, where he met the recipients of the charity’s ongoing support to the industry.

Among them was former jockey Wayne Burton, who suffered serious head and spinal injuries in 2008 and lives at Oaksey House after being left paralysed from the chest down.

Burton is training to complete the London Marathon in his wheelchair in April, and said of the role the IJF has played in his recovery: “I did lose my speech, my understanding of what things were and where I was – that was a really hard battle for me at the time.

“Without the IJF I wouldn’t be here today, this place was built a year after my accident so as soon as this was open I was one of the first jockeys to come here.”

Carter also spoke with George Baker, another former jockey who won the St Leger aboard Harbour Law in 2016 before suffering severe injuries in a fall on the ‘White Turf’ at St Moritz.

Baker had a bleed on the brain and spent a significant amount of time in hospital before being rehabilitated at Oaksey House, where he now works alongside being a trustee for the charity.

“I am a trustee for the Injured Jockeys Fund and I work here three or four days a week in my role as a jockey coach,” he said.

“The Injured Jockeys Fund were a massive help to me, I had a bad accident in 2017 in Switzerland, at St Moritz on the White Turf.

“I was hospital in London for three or four months, I think it was a harder journey for my family more than anything and the next phase of my rehab was coming here.

“They helped rebuild me, really. I had to learn to walk again. They were instrumental in getting me back to work, they asked me to be a trustee and I’m very, very happy to facilitate that because the Injured Jockeys Fund is so close to my heart.”

Leeson lasts marathon course to aid Injured Jockeys Fund

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The Injured Jockeys Fund and mental health charity Mind are the beneficiaries of a magnificent marathon-running effort from Catherine Leeson, who completed her year-long fundraising challenge in Malton this weekend.

The Jack Berry House employee embarked on the unique and awe-inspiring mission of running one marathon every month at the beginning of 2023 and fittingly completed the final miles of her daring dozen with a racing-themed run around the Yorkshire training hub.

Treacherous icy conditions thanks to the recent cold snap meant for a more testing final leg to her endeavours, which started and finished at the IJF’s northern rehabilitation centre, Jack Berry House, and encompassed some of the town’s major training bases, such as Richard Fahey’s Musley Bank stables.

Overcome with emotion at the finish line as she was cheered on by friends, family and members of the racing community, Leeson – who grew up close to Malton – has currently raised over £3,000 to split between her two chosen charities.

“I felt very lucky and very emotional,” said Leeson. “My pride to work for the Injured Jockeys Fund and my pride about being part of the Jack Berry House team was my overall emotion.

“I was very lucky to have a great team supporting in the conditions, it was minus 5C and it was really frosty and icy.

“The team who work at the Injured Jockeys Fund are amazing and the overall support from not only the staff, but the patients, the beneficiaries and the local racing community, I felt very lucky and proud to be a part of that and it made it special.”

She went on: “I originally set a target of £1,000 for each charity, which I know sounds a bit low, but it is a difficult time and everyone is watching their spending; I didn’t want people to feel pressured.

“But I’ve raised just over £3,000 in total so far and I would love to raise another £1,000 or £2,000 if possible.

“I think with everything which has happened recently with Graham Lee, we are always trying to get more funds for the Injured Jockeys Fund and the more the better, but I’m happy with what we have raised so far.”

A spotlight has been shone on the work of the IJF following the incident at Newcastle that saw Graham Lee sustain serious injuries.

Its work is invaluable to the racing community not only in the rehabilitation of injuries but in offering financial support and help with mental well-being, with Leeson having immense pride in working for the company as a sports rehabilitator for the past eight years.

She added: “I’ve always been super, super proud to work for the Injured Jockeys Fund and in particular at Jack Berry House. It’s a really, really special place.

“I’ve never actually sat on a racehorse, I’m not quite brave enough to do that, so technically I’m not from a racing background, but after eight years at Jack Berry House you learn to love the sport, really. When the centre was being built, I always wanted to work there.”

Leeson’s time with the IJF has exposed her to the harsh realities of a 365-days-a-year sport and the life of the professionals at the heart of it, with one of the main objectives of her marathon challenge being to highlight the mental health support available via the fund.

She continued: “The brilliant idea was to run around the racing yards (for the final marathon) and as much as it is about raising money, the challenge is about raising awareness of the mental health side and the support that is needed.

Catherine Leeson completes her marathon challenge (Catherine Leeson)

“It’s amazing when people come in for treatment or are one of our respite patients, coming in for a longer period of time, how people start to open up about their struggles and the difficulties of racing.

“Until you are in that position and you see people day-in, day-out, you don’t realise the toll it takes and the internal mental strength that people in racing need to battle through the highs and lows of it.

“It would be over 10 yards we ran past or through and it was amazing to fit in as many yards as possible.

“Malton is such a hub for racing and I really wanted to, as well as raise awareness, just celebrate the work of the Injured Jockeys Fund. We had a lovely day and lots of beneficiaries joined us afterwards, it was a special day.”

There was also another reason close to the heart of Leeson for raising such vital funds for two worthy causes, with herself once a beneficiary of IJF support at a time of need.

Catherine Leeson during one of her 12 marathons in 2023
Catherine Leeson during one of her 12 marathons in 2023 (Catherine Leeson)

“A few years ago, I went through a really challenging time and, as amazing as the team is, they not only look after their patients, but they look after their staff really well,” she explained.

“They sensed after a little bit of time, I wasn’t quite right, and I was fortunate enough that the team gathered round me and picked me up and I was able to access some amazing mental health support through the charity, which was invaluable.

“Having gone through that myself, I could see what a difference it makes to our patients – and without them, I don’t know where I would have been, which is a really scary thought.”

She went on: “I decided I wanted to give something back to the charity and continue the amazing work they do on the mental health side alongside the stuff we do day-to-day in the centres.

“I also chose Mind, as I wanted to fundraise for people who didn’t have access to specialist facilities and so no one should have to suffer with poor mental health.”

Now, despite almost falling at the very first hurdle, she can look back with pride, having successfully completed her ambitious challenge when crossing the finish line at the Jack Berry House she holds dear.

Leeson said: “I took a fall when doing the first one and knocked myself out after 30 kilometres. I managed to continue and looking back, I was thinking why did I decide to do 12!

“But I’m so glad I did and, as well as a big challenge, it’s been a brilliant experience.”

Donations can be made via the following link: https://www.justgiving.com/page/catherine-leeson-1677512328351

‘Positive progress’ reported in Graham Lee injury recovery

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The Injured Jockeys Fund has provided a further update on Graham Lee, in which he is described as having made “positive progress”.

The Grand National and Ascot Gold Cup-winning rider remains in Royal Victoria Infirmary Hospital in Newcastle after a serious fall last week, when unseated from Ben Macdui at the start of an all-weather handicap on Friday.

He suffered an unstable cervical fracture causing damage to his spinal cord and has undergone two procedures to stabilise the fractures and further protect his spinal cord.

The IJF update, circulated on Friday afternoon, read: “Graham has made positive progress in the last 24 hours and has been able to talk normally with his family for short periods when his ventilator is turned down.

“He has been reviewed by his spinal consultant and when a bed becomes available in the ITU at James Cook Hospital, Middlesborough, he will be transferred closer to home.

“Graham and his family want to thank everyone for their continued and overwhelming support.”

Graham Lee’s family speak of ‘overwhelming’ support for injured rider

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Graham Lee has undergone surgery at the Royal Victoria Infirmary Hospital in Newcastle after a serious fall last week, with his daughter Amy thanking the racing world for its “overwhelming” support.

The Grand National and Group One-winning jockey was unseated from Ben Macdui at the start of an all-weather handicap at Newcastle on Friday, suffering injuries that saw him taken to hospital and admitted to an intensive care unit.

He has since been identified as having an unstable cervical fracture causing damage to his spinal cord, and the racing world has rallied round the rider and his family.

The Injured Jockeys Fund have been heavily involved in those efforts, and on Wednesday afternoon released an update which read: “Jockey Graham Lee had surgery yesterday at the Royal Victoria Infirmary Hospital in Newcastle to stabilise the fractures in his cervical spine and further protect his spinal cord.

“He also had a tracheostomy performed to allow him to be more comfortable and improve communication.

“Whilst Graham has recovered from the surgery well, the extent of his long-term recovery remains uncertain.”

The statement added: “Graham’s family would like to thank everyone for their best wishes and for their support of the JustGiving page set up by Graham’s 18-year-old daughter Amy, who says: ‘I am personally writing down each and every message and donation that comes through and I share all of these with dad. To be honest it’s simply overwhelming and we can’t believe that so many people are thinking of us. I wish I could explain how much of a difference it will make to dad’s recovery knowing that he has your support – thank you from the bottom of my heart’.”

The JustGiving page created by Amy Lee is now approaching £80,000 in donations that will go to the IJF.

IJF pledges to support Graham Lee throughout recovery

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Injured Jockeys Fund president Sir Anthony McCoy and vice-president Jack Berry have issued a joint-statement underlining the organisation’s support for Graham Lee, however long his recuperation takes.

McCoy shared the weighing room with Lee during the 47-year-old’s first part of his career, during which he was a Grand National-winning jump jockey.

Lee then turned his attentions the Flat, where he won an Ascot Gold Cup on Trip To Paris and the Nunthorpe on Alpha Delphini.

It emerged on Sunday that the injuries Lee suffered in a fall at Newcastle on Friday were very serious, with an MRI scan showing an unstable cervical fracture which was causing damage to his spinal cord.

The statement read: “Like everyone in racing, we at the Injured Jockeys Fund are all devastated with the news of the injuries Graham Lee sustained from his horrific fall at Newcastle on Friday.

“All our thoughts are with Graham, his wife Becky, and their family.

“As bad as Graham’s injuries are, please do rest assured that our team at the IJF will look after his needs to assist him in his recovery and predicament for as long as it takes.

“Whatever help he and his family needs, we will be there to provide it.”

Julie Harrington, the chief executive of the British Horseracing Authority, also sent her best wishes.

She said: “We are shocked to hear the distressing news regarding the injuries suffered by Graham Lee. Our thoughts are with his family and friends and the whole sport is praying for one of its finest ambassadors.

“We are doing everything we can to support Graham and his family, and we ask that everyone respect the privacy of his family at this time.”