An Irish amateur rider has accused top British jockey Nico de Boinville of directing a racially abusive comment towards him during a tense moment at the Cheltenham Festival. Declan Queally and de Boinville, who rides for Nicky Henderson, engaged in a heated exchange at the start of the Turners Novices’ Hurdle, the first race on the festival’s second day.
Emotions ran high as the riders vied for position among the 21-horse field, resulting in the starter calling two false starts before the race commenced. De Boinville ultimately secured second place on Act Of Innocence, trailing the Willie Mullins-trained winner King Rasko Grey, while Queally finished fifth aboard the family-trained I’ll Sort That.
The verbal altercation between the riders escalated post-race, with Queally expressing his displeasure to ITV Racing, stating, “Being abused by an English rider Nico de Boinville is not very nice. I’m an amateur. I’ve come over here riding in front of my kids and that. Horrific.” De Boinville retorted, suggesting Queally reflect on his own actions.
Following a stewards’ inquiry, it was reported that Queally, along with several other riders, had contributed to the false starts by not approaching the starting tape correctly. Consequently, Kennedy and Queally received one-day suspensions for misconduct at the start, while Gilligan and O’Keefe faced two-day suspensions due to a repeat offense within the past year.
Queally lodged a complaint regarding an incident at the start, alleging that de Boinville had verbally insulted him multiple times in front of the ITV camera. Queally further asserted that the comments were of a racial nature, prompting him to report the matter to the BHA stewards. De Boinville declined to provide a comment when approached for a response.
The stewards announced that they had adjourned the matter to gather additional evidence after hearing initial statements from Queally and Nico de Boinville.
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