Ana O’Brien, the jockey daughter of champion trainer Aidan, has suffered a fractured C1 vertebra in her neck and T6 in her back after a fall at Killarney.
The 21-year-old fell when her mount Druids Cross, trained by her brother Joseph, slipped and suffered fatal injuries.
O’Brien was taken by air ambulance to hospital where the fractures were confirmed with doctors saying the good news was she had no brain injuries.
“Ana’s brain scan is clear,” Turf club chief medical officer Dr Adrian McGoldrick said.
“She has a fractured C1 vertebra in her neck and T6 in her back. Both will have an MRI scan tomorrow to assess further.
“She has fractured cheek bones bilaterally. Aidan and AnneMarie (O’Brien) would like to thank the superb work provided to Ana by the Order Of Malta, racecourse doctors, veterinary team and ground staff led by Val O’Connell (clerk of the course).”
McGoldrick added he expected O’Brien, who rode in both the English and Irish Derbys for her father this season and partnered her first winner as a 16-year-old at Dundalk in February, 2013, to have a recovery period of between three to four months.
