Fans call for a lifetime ban for jockey Christophe Soumillon after he ELBOWED a rival off his horse 20
Fans call for a lifetime ban for jockey Christophe Soumillon after he ELBOWED a rival off his horse 21
Fans call for a lifetime ban for jockey Christophe Soumillon after he ELBOWED a rival off his horse 22
Fans call for a lifetime ban for jockey Christophe Soumillon after he ELBOWED a rival off his horse 23
Horse racing fans are calling for a life ban for Belgian jockey Christophe Soumillon after he knocked a rival off his horse mid-race, causing him to tumble to his neck at 35mph… but the stewards say he can still ride this weekend
Christope Soumillon pushed Rossa Ryan off his horse in Saint-CloudOne commenter likened it to ‘jumping out of a car roof at 35mph’Soumillon was immediately disqualified and given a two-month suspensionThe ban is believed to take effect after he races in the Arc this weekend
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Fans share their outrage after Christophe Soumillon pushed Rossa Ryan off his horse in a race in Saint-Cloud.
Ryan appeared unharmed after the incident but fell startlingly quickly into a collision, a Sky Sports Racing pundit compared to, ‘jumping out of a car sunroof at 35mph’.
Soumillon was immediately disqualified from the race and has been banned for two months for pushing, although the ban is likely to come into effect after Sunday’s race.
After the incident, he said: “I got a little pressure from Rossa’s mount. I tried to maintain a better position behind Ryan Moore.
“I put my elbow against him to tell him I wasn’t going in.
“Unfortunately, when I asked my horse to go there and to the right I pushed him (Rossa) a step or two and he fell off.
“I knew right away that I had made a mistake. I want to apologize to everyone. I just saw Rossa and he’s fine and so is the horse.
Christophe Soumillon (right) banned from racing for two months
Rossa started to lose her balance after being pushed by Soumillon halfway through the race
His fall was likened by a Sky commentator to ‘jumping out of a car sunroof at 35 mph’
“It was not a nice act on my part and I am terribly sorry and would like to apologize.”
Race fans on Twitter felt the ban should have lasted longer for such a deliberate act. One said: ‘That would require a long ban! Insanity!’ While another added it was “dangerous, reckless and clearly intentional.” Unbelievable.’
’60 day ban for endangering a fellow jockey, could have broken his neck, broken his back, much worse if he broke his neck, he would have been banned for life so why is it different that he luckily didn’t get seriously injured?’
Rossa (right) wouldn’t have been injured after the fall, but it could have been a lot worse
It also read: ‘Shocking footage and the camera never lies, probably the worst willful act I’ve ever seen from a jockey. Luckily he ran away.’
Others commented on how surprising the act was for a jockey the size of Soumillon to act so recklessly, with Ryan Phelan tweeting, “This is terrible from a great jockey.”
Soumillon will ride in the Arc on Sunday, where he is one of the favorites on Vadeni.