Further news anticipated on severity of Clifford Lee’s neck injury

Trainer Karl Burke expects to have a clearer idea of the severity of Clifford Lee’s injuries later this week after the jockey was was taken to hospital following a motorbike accident in Scotland.

Lee has enjoyed a breakthrough season on the Flat, highlighted by a first Group One success aboard Venetian Sun in the Prix Morny as well as several other big-race wins aboard the likes of Royal Champion, Al Qareem and Convergent.

With the rider serving a suspension after winning on his last four rides, he enjoyed a short holiday in Greece before heading to Scotland with his family where he fell when riding a cross-country motorbike and having suffered a neck injury, he is now in intensive care.

“It’s a bit of a sickener to finish what has been a very good year like this, especially for Cliff obviously,” said Burke.

“All I know is that he can move his arms and legs but the last I heard he was in an induced coma. I think they’re planning to bring him out of that gently over the next 48 hours.

“He got up after he came off the bike apparently and was walking but was obviously in pain. They took to him hospital and they’ve got him sedated now.

“Apparently he had a GoPro on, his girlfriend has seen the recording and he was going less than 10 miles per hour, but the front wheel went into a dry riverbed or a dry stream and the whole thing twisted the wrong way and sent him flying over the handlebars. If he’d have been going fast he’d probably have been fired out, rather than falling off head first.

“It’s a nasty one and he’s not out of the woods by a long way yet.”