Apprentice jockey Izzy Neale has died aged 22 after suffering critical injuries in a fall at Warren on Sunday.
Neale was riding Marnoo, trained by Kieren Hazelton, when the horse faltered near the 400-metre mark of the Cotton Cup. She fell heavily and was unconscious when airlifted to Dubbo Hospital.
Marnoo was euthanised after sustaining an injury to its near foreleg. The remaining race on Sunday’s programme was abandoned.
Neale’s family announced her death in a statement on Tuesday, saying she had been surrounded by close family and friends.
“It was with great sadness and broken hearts that we announce the passing of our beloved Izzy, surrounded by her closest family and friends,” they said.
“Izzy rode horses before she could walk. Her love of horses was a lifelong passion that, more recently, had grown into a love of racing.”
The family thanked Racing NSW, the NSW Jockeys’ Association and medical staff for their support, as well as Neale’s friends and the wider racing community. They said Neale’s decision to become an organ donor would give others the chance of life.
Neale, from Merriwa in the Upper Hunter, worked for Scone trainer Scott Singleton and recorded 88 winners since beginning her professional racing career in February 2024.
She rode 11 times in Sydney and won a Highway Handicap at Rosehill in July on It’s A Tata, trained by Brett Robb.
Racing NSW cancelled Monday’s meeting at Scone, Neale’s home track, as a mark of respect. The meeting is due to be held on Wednesday.
Another jockey, Diego Montes de Oca, was dislodged from Shadow Dane shortly after Neale’s fall. He was taken to hospital by ambulance with soft-tissue injuries to his left foot and was discharged on Monday.
Neale is the first jockey to die from a race fall in New South Wales since Darren Jones succumbed to injuries sustained at Warialda in 2017. French jockey Marina Morel died after a trackwork fall at Gulgong in February 2022, while Italian rider Stefano Cherchi died following a race fall at Canberra in March 2024.
