Ryan Boman
In what can only be described as a mix of the Pony Express and the Wide World of Sports, a jockey pulled a daredevil move when he managed to hang on to his horse, despite breaking one of the stirrups on Sunday.
Photo by Mathew Schwartz, free to use under the Unsplash license.
In the middle of the third race of the day at the Hawthorne Race Course in Illinois, Abel Lezcano’s body could be seen down the right side of his mount. The broken stirrup caused him to lean so far to the right that from the left side, his body was completely concealed by the horse.
Somehow, Lezcano pulled back onto his steed and finished the race.
You want pure athleticism, this is it right here! Watch as jockey Abel Lezcano has his right stirrup break in the first turn of race 3 @ClubHawthorne and somehow he manages to avert disaster and stay aboard. Pure strength and grit there! @TVG @PDJFund pic.twitter.com/ubkHYRei4Q
— Jim Miller (@HawthorneJim) August 20, 2023
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“I started falling and knew I had only three options,” Lezcano told Bloodhorse. “If I let go of the horse and fall, it will go on without me, but it could hurt other jockeys and horses behind me. Possibly the horse could get hurt if I let go; he could fall while he was loose. The second option was that if I fell with the horse, it could be bad for me and the horse. The third option was to hold on for dear life and pray that God would give me the strength to pull myself back on.”
“Thank God I’m only sore but glad didn’t fall or hurt anybody. By the grace of The Lord, I’m here and will continue working hard.”
Abel Lezcano started riding in 2009 and has started 5,069 horses to a record of 448-552-612, with earnings in excess of $13 million.