Jockey Abel Cedillo was taken to a local hospital after being thrown from his mount just after the start of Sunday's fourth race at Del Mar racetrack near San Diego, Calif.
Cedillo was aboard Get the Gold for trainer Kristin Mulhall in a one-mile maiden special weight race for California-breds when the colt was pinched badly coming out of the starting gate and fell, throwing the rider to the ground awkwardly. Get the Gold scrambled to his feet and was quickly apprehended, but Cedillo did not get up.
An ambulance positioned adjacent to the starting gate for the two-turn race – which began in front of the grandstand a short distance from the finish line – arrived shortly after the incident, but members of the starting gate crew were the first to attend to Cedillo. As the race continued, and medical personnel did not seem to take charge of the situation, the gate crew lifted Cedillo by his four limbs and carried him to the nearby winner's circle, thereby clearing the track and permitting the race to continue.
Cedillo was fitted with a neck brace and placed on a backboard by medical personnel, then was taken away by ambulance. Jockey Diego Herrera, exchanged a few words with Cedillo and said the rider relayed that he was experiencing neck pain. According to Daily Racing Form, Cedillo was having X-rays taken Sunday evening.
Silver N Black, who finished third, was disqualified and placed last for interference at the start of the race.
Josh Rubinstein, president of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, declined to comment on whether safety protocols were properly followed after the incident. “Our number one priority is the safety for the rider and the horse,” Rubinstein said.
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