Jockey Stefano Cherchi has died from injuries sustained in a Canberra race fall
Italian-born jockey Stefano Cherchi had died, two weeks after suffering head and internal injuries in a race fall at Canberra.
The NSW Jockeys’ Association announced the devastating news on Wednesday on behalf of the 23-year-old’s family.
“With deep sadness, the Cherchi family have announced their beloved son Stefano passed away peacefully today,” the Jockeys’ Association said via Twitter.
“The family are very grateful for the love, prayers & messages sent by the racing community across the world.”
Cherchi’s mount Hasime fell in the third race at Canberra on March 20, bringing down two other horses.
The other jockeys involved, Shaun Guymer and Jeff Penza, escaped injury while Cherchi was treated on track before being transferred to Canberra Hospital.
He fought hard for two weeks but was unable to recover from his injuries.
Born in Italy, Cherchi relocated to England as a teenager and was apprenticed to Newmarket trainer Marco Botti before moving to Australia at the start of the year.
Riding his first winner at Nottingham in 2018, he went on to tally 108 winners in total from more than 1100 rides.
