The Sussex jockey itching to return to the saddle - even though he broke his back just a month ago

Sussex jockey Jamie Moore is desperate to ride again after a nasty fall at Fontwell Park in which he broke his back and his sternum - and amazingly, he is aiming to be back in the saddle just three months after the incident.
Jamie Moore at Fontwell, where he broke his back and sternum in a fall last month / Picture: GettyJamie Moore at Fontwell, where he broke his back and sternum in a fall last month / Picture: Getty
Jamie Moore at Fontwell, where he broke his back and sternum in a fall last month / Picture: Getty

Moore was flung out of the saddle on August 18 five from home on the John Bridger-trained Alka Step, breaking his back and sternum in the process.

It goes without saying, breaking your back can have serious consequences – something the 35-year-old was all too aware of:

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“It was quite weird – I’ve broken 26 bones, so you know when you’re injured and I was lying on the floor and my whole body went pins and needles straight away and I thought ‘I’m in trouble’," he said.

"But then I moved my legs and I thought; well that’s ok, I can move my legs. And then every time I was breathing, my sternum was clicking, so I said to the doctors ‘look – I’ve broken my sternum and I’m pretty sure I’ve broken my back. Can you take me to Brighton hospital – instead of going to Chichester – so I can be closer to my family?”

Moore said his rehab was progressing nicely - in fact at a rate that willl amaze many given the severity of his injury.

“I’m on the bike, I’m swimming, gentle jogging, plenty of core work so its going well. My body is doing good," he told us.

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"The hospital were absolutely brilliant, and they couldn’t have done any more for me. I just wanted to walk out of there and then kick on. After two weeks, I was on a bike, and swimming, in the gym, walking around the yard – doing my best.

"I go to the gym down the road from my house and I’ve just done a couple of days in Newmarket. I stay with Ryan (Moore, his jockey brother) and go to Peter O’Sullevan House. I’ve done a couple of sessions up there. I go up there every week – two or three days on the bounce – and then go back home.”

The remarkable recovery is partly thanks to the incredible facilities jockeys are provided with by the Injured Jockeys Fund:

“It’s a massive help. All credit to the IJF – there’s three now, Oaksey House, Peter O’Sullevan House and Jack Berry House. They’re absolutely phenomenal places to help jockeys like myself “

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After surviving his injuries with minimum long-term effects, you’d think riding would be the last thing on his mind. However, these jockeys are made of tough stuff.

“It’s not the last thing on my mind – I’ve got to get back," he said. "We’ve got lovely horses in my dad’s yard to ride and I can’t wait to get back. I’d be training hard now – even if I wasn’t a jockey – I have that sort of mentality. I hate sitting around, I like to be busy and I like doing physical stuff.

"I put pain to the back of my mind and I push myself as hard as I possibly can. I see my dad (trainer Gary) every day of the week and there’s nobody tougher than him – he’s phenomenal and I look up to him. I’ve been injured plenty of times – you have to deal with it.

"I just want to be riding horses - even if it’s riding out in the mornings. I love riding horses – whether it be in a race or riding out. I can’t wait to be back race-riding. I’d like to think I’ll be back in November.”

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One of Moore's higher-profile unseatings came from Goshen in the 2020 Triumph Hurdle.at Cheltenham. His father has said they will be targeting the 2021 Champion Hurdle, and Moore supplied an update on when we are likely to see him again.

“All being well – it’s ground dependent – he’ll possibly run on the flat on September 26. We’ll see how it goes – you wouldn’t want to run him on good to firm ground.”

Moore also paid tribute to Pat Smullen, who passed away last week following a battle with cancer. The nine-time Irish champion jockey's death has plunged the whole racing community into mourning and Moore said: “You think you’re having a bad day with horses – then things happen in real life and you have got to appreciate what you’ve got.

"Pat Smullen was such a lovely man. What he’d done since he got diagnosed was beyond remarkable.”

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