Suraj Narredu and Kiran Rai escaped with minor injuries, while Y S Srinath, at the time of writing this report, was undergoing an MRI to rule out any serious issue.
This picture has been used for representation purpose only
Bangalore: The Bangalore Winter racing season which began on Friday had a jinxed start. The very first race of the new season saw a freak accident that involved a spill, resulting in three jockeys ejected from the saddles. The jockeys involved were leading champion Suraj Narredu who is fast approaching a personal landmark of 2000 career wins, veteran hickey Y S Srinath and rider Kiran Rai.
Thankfully, Suraj Narredu & Kiran Rai escaped with minor injuries, while Y S Srinath, at the time of writing this report, was undergoing an MRI to rule out any serious issue.
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Apparently, the jockeys were reluctant to ride on a racetrack that was rendered dangerous due to the unseasonal rains, and had informed the BTC in writing. However, the BTC administrators, JAI (Jockeys Association of India) now alleges, forced them to go against their own good judgement.
The punters, who had thronged the turf club in large numbers to witness live racing after a gap of more than 2 months, went berserk after they came to know about the callous attitude of the BTC administrators, went on a rampage and vandalised the turf club premises.
"This is the worst track we have had at BTC in years," tweeted jockey Suraj Narredu after the incident, mincing no words, "unfortunately we are paying for someone else's blunder."
The season has been suspended until further notice, and the JAI has made it clear the jockeys will not ride unless a joint committee of jockeys and BTC administrators first certifies the racetrack as safe.
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