Jack Kennedy: Jockey suffers fifth broken leg after bad Naas fall as horse dies
- Published
Jack Kennedy is 18 winners ahead of title holder Paul Townend in the Irish jockeys championship
Top Irish jockey Jack Kennedy could be out of action for some time after suffering a leg fracture in a fall at Naas on Sunday which also led to the death of his horse.
Kennedy was aboard the Gordon Elliott-trained Top Bandit in a Novice Chase when they fell at the fourth fence.
The jockey's agent Kevin O'Ryan said that Kennedy had sustained "a fracture of his lower leg".
It's the fifth broken leg that Kennedy, 23, has suffered during his career.
There will be concerns that Elliott's number one rider following the recent retirement of Davy Russell could be a doubt for the Cheltenham Festival in March.
Kennedy, who won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 2021 on Minella Indo, was transferred to Tallaght Hospital following his fall although he returned to Naas on Monday morning to watch some of Elliott's horses being put through their paces.
When asked how long he felt Kennedy will be on the sidelines for, O'Ryan replied: "How long is a piece of string? Everybody heals differently.
"He'll be doing his damnedest to be back as quickly as possible, but how long that will be, nobody knows."
On Sunday, trainer Elliott told Racing TV: "It didn't look good. I went down to the fence when he got the fall and he looked pretty sore."
The injury looks set to be a major blow to Kennedy's hopes of being crowned Irish champion jockey for the first time with him currently holding an 18-winner lead over reigning champion Paul Townend.
"It looked like he was in pole position to be champion jockey. If it's not going to happen this year, hopefully it will happen sometime for him," added Elliott.
With Kennedy expected to be out for some time, Elliott is now set to hand rides to the likes of his other stable jockeys Jordan Gainford, Sam Ewing and Denis O'Regan.
"They are going to have to take it with both hands. It's their chance now to step up," added the trainer.