A Milnathort-based jockey suffered broken ribs and several fractured vertebrae in a horror fall at Kelso Racecourse.
Conner McCann, 18, fell from the Lucinda Russell-trained horse Diamond State at the 2m5f handicap hurdle.
He was assessed on the course by medical staff, with race footage showing the teenager lying face down after the fall on Saturday.
An air ambulance arrived on the scene shortly after 3pm and the young jockey was taken to Borders General Hospital by road ambulance.
The next race was delayed by about 30 minutes while medical professionals attended to Conner.
The race was one of three series finals on the day.
It was recorded for RacingTV with Conner and Diamond State seen falling at a hurdle around 5 minutes and 25 seconds into the video (shown above).
Lucinda Russell shared an update on his condition from Conner’s mum on social media on Sunday night.
It read: “(Conner) was transferred to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary last night.
“He has two broken ribs, three fractures in his thoracic vertebrae and a suspect fracture in C6 vertebrae, and a tiny fracture of his fibula, luckily no head injury.
“He is due an MRI scan tomorrow (Monday) to check his fractured vertebrae and we will know more about recovery then.
“Conner’s first words to me yesterday (were) ‘how’s Diamond? Is my horse ok? Are you sure he’s ok?'”
Multiple injuries following horror fall
The trainer confirmed Diamond State was “perfect” after the fall.
Conner’s mother also wanted to thank all those who had expressed concern for her son and wished him a speedy recovery.
The update received an outpouring of support from the horse racing community.
The Kinross-shire jockey had only returned to racing the day before his fall, after having been off injured since January.
From Conner McCann's mother #getwellsoonConner Update on Conner McCann after his horrific fall at Kelso racecourse yesterday, sorry it's taken so long but information has been in short supply, he was transfered to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary last night.
— lucinda russell (@lucindavrussell) March 27, 2022
Lucinda Russell’s partner and assistant Peter Scudamore said Conner “will be out of action for some time”.
As reported in Sky Sports, Scudamore said on Sunday morning: “I believe Conner is better than we first thought.
“We thought initially he may have broken his legs, but he has a cracked vertebra and some cracked ribs, and a cut on his head.
“He was texting his girlfriend, so he must have been compos mentis and OK to do that. I think it is better than we first feared.
“He is in hospital in Edinburgh, so when we are allowed, we will go and see him.
‘We feared the worst’
“Everybody was worried. We feared the worst.
“It is looking better, but it is still serious and he will be out of action for some time, I should think, but at least he is telling us what the injuries are and all we can do is hope that he makes a speedy recovery.”
Conner and Diamond State have proven themselves as strong competitors since pairing up in November.
They won on their very first race together, over jumps at Musselburgh Racecourse that same month.
Conner went on to gain four more wins from just 13 rides over jumps with the horse.
Lucinda Russell has been training National Hunt horses since 1995.
