Tim Bell was a natural a horseman who was determined to make it to the top as a jockey, his former master Sue Grills has said.
Bell joined Grills at her Tamworth stables as a 14-year-old and immediately showed talent beyond his years.
The trainer said she was devastated by the news of Bell’s death in Singapore on Wednesday.
“He was only 22,” she told RadioTAB.
“Right from the start he was so dedicated and he would be forever studying race videos and on the mechanical horse practising.
“He could ride anything from the start. He was always going to make it.”
She said when Bell was ready for city racing his parents had driven him to meetings in Sydney and Brisbane.
Bell’s career got a major boost with his 12 wins on Grills’s sprinter Border Rebel.
He went on to claim the 2013-14 Brisbane jockeys’ premiership and in the same season notched his first Group One win on Tinto in the Queensland Oaks.
An investigation is believed to be underway into the death of the 22-year-old, which was not racing-related.
Bell began a three-month riding contract in Singapore last month.
