Rising Star Jockey Izzy Neale Dies at 22 Following Tragic Race Fall

​The Australian horse racing community is in deep mourning following the death of 22-year-old apprentice jockey Izzy Neale, who succumbed to severe injuries sustained in a race fall at Warren Racecourse.

​Neale was riding the Kieran Hazelton-trained gelding Marnoo during the sixth race on Sunday—the Warren Shire Cotton Cup—when the horse fell roughly 400 metres from the finish line. Knocked unconscious in the incident, Neale was treated on course before being airlifted to Dubbo Hospital, where she was placed on life support. Tragically, she passed away surrounded by her closest family and friends.

​In a heartbreaking joint statement released on Tuesday, Racing NSW and the Neale family shared that despite their devastating loss, Izzy’s legacy will live on through organ donation.

​”Izzy rode horses before she could walk. Her love of horses was a lifelong passion that, more recently, had grown into a love of racing,” the family said. “Through organ donation, Izzy will give others the chance of life, bringing some comfort to our family amid this devastating loss.”

​Marnoo sustained a fatal foreleg injury during the accident and was humanely euthanised. Another rider involved in the fall, Diego Montes de Oca, was also transported to Dubbo Hospital suffering from a foot injury before being discharged.

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​Regarded as a dedicated and rising talent in the sport, Neale had notched 88 wins from 699 career starts. Just a day before the accident, she had been competing at Sydney’s Rosehill Gardens, reflecting on milestones that included her first metropolitan victory in July aboard It’s A Tata and preparations to buy her first home.

​Tributes have poured in from across the global racing industry, with trainers, jockeys, and sporting bodies expressing profound grief over the tragedy. Out of respect for the tragedy, remaining events at Warren were abandoned, and a scheduled meeting at Neale’s home track in Scone was postponed.