Leger jockey injured in horse race on St Moritz ice

Baker, who won Doncaster’s signature race last September on Harbour Law, was riding Boomerang Bob for Jamie Osborne on the frozen lake track when the horse was brought down and fatally injured in the first race of the day.

Three horses came down in the incident but the other two and both of their riders escaped injury.

Baker was taken to a trauma hospital in Chur and the rest of the meeting was abandoned.

Baker’s agent, Guy Jewell, said: “George has woken up, and with the hospital releasing that news I can only imagine they are pleased with his progress. He’d already had a CT scan and that has come back clear.

Speaking after the incident, St Moritz press officer Claudia Grasern-Woehrle said: “We’ve had a bad accident in the first race. We checked the track following the incident and we have found a hole in it, which means we have had to cancel the rest of the meeting as safety comes first.”

Top European jockey Christophe Soumillon was riding in the race and said: “It was the first race and there were only nine runners. Turning into the straight the snow was only up to the horses’ shoes. You could see by the prints afterwards that there was water between the ice and the snow.”