Tributes paid to groom Ken Dooley after Kempton death

Trainer Amanda Perrett had paid tribute to Ken Dooley after her groom was named as the man fatally injured at Kempton on Saturday evening.

It is believed Dooley, who was in his 50s, was kicked by a horse in the racecourse stables at the Sunbury track.

The final two races the meeting were abandoned and the incident is being investigated by Surrey police.  

Ken Dooley sadly passed away after an incident at Kempton Park stables on Saturday

A man in his 50s has died in as yet unexplained circumstances following an incident in the stable yard at Kempton, police are now investigating 

Trainer Amanda Perrett has paid tribute to Dooley following his tragic death

Perrett, who trains at Coombelands stable in Pulborough, Sussex, described Dooley as ‘hugely enthusiastic’ and ‘integral’ member of her staff.

In a statement in which she thanked staff at Kempton, medical services and colleagues for their efforts to save Dooley’s life, Perrett said: ‘It is with huge sadness that I can confirm we lost our friend and colleague Ken Dooley after an incident in the stable yard at Kempton last night.

‘Ken had been with us for seven years and was a very special member of our family business at Coombelands.

‘He was an excellent employee, very experienced with racehorses having worked all of his life with them as a jockey, trainer and jockey coach around the world.

‘He was always first into work in the morning, hugely enthusiastic and dedicated to his horses and a very much valued and integral member of our team.

‘Our thoughts are with his family at this very sad time.’ 

Perrett, the daughter of retired trainer Guy Harwood, had three runners at Kempton. Two of them, The Warrior and Mr Bossy Boots, had already run when the incident occurred.

Her third runner, Parnassian, was due to run in the penultimate race.

Jockey Martin Dwyer, who was riding at the fixture, said he believed Dooley was killed by a kick.

He told Racing UK: ‘Unfortunately, horses do kick out and I believe that’s what happened. They have metal shoes on and if you get a kick from a horse it can be very serious.

‘Horses don’t mean to do it – if they feel frightened or threatened. If they feel someone is too close or something they do kick out but fortunately it is very rare. It is very sad.’  

We send our deepest condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of the training stables employee who passed away last night

— Kempton Park (@kemptonparkrace) October 15, 2017

Support is available 24hrs a day for anyone affected by the incident through the @Racingwelfare helpline, 0800 6300 443

— Kempton Park (@kemptonparkrace) October 15, 2017

The BHA said any decision on any investigation it might launch would not be made until the police had concluded their enquiries.

Chief executive Nick Rust said: ‘My teams were assisting with their investigations last night and will continue to do so. We ask that everyone shows respect and understanding to this process at present.’

‘I’m sure that I speak for everyone at the BHA and everyone in British horseracing when I state that we’re truly devastated about the events which unfolded at Kempton Park.’

The BHA set minimum safety criteria which racecourses must adhere to comply with their licences to race.

Spokesman Robin Mounsey added: ‘The BHA is constantly reviewing its criteria and working with racecourses to ensure levels of safety on a race day are as high as possible, though obviously where large animals are involved there is a small element of risk that can never be eradicated entirely.

‘Fortunately there have been no other incidents of this nature in recent memory.’  

Sunday afternoon’s meetings at Goodwood and Chepstow will stage a minute’s silence

With spectators and unpredictable racehorses in close proximity, the wonder is so few serious incidents have taken place on racetracks particularly in the paddock.

These areas, particularly at big meetings, are often dangerously packed despite some racecourses attempting to reduce access.

There have been a number of near-misses since trainer Chris Kinane, who used to work for Harwood, had his skull shattered when kicked in the Wolverhampton parade ring in 2005.

He subsequently spent almost a year in hospital and required 14 operations to rebuild his skull.

Dooley’s death is the second tragedy to hit racing this summer.

In July, Steve Yarborough was killed in an incident involving the starting stalls at Haydock.

Kempton was also the venue where Flat jockey Freddy Tylicki was left paralysed from the waist down in a three-horse pile-up during race in October last year. 

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