The Wednesday of the Cheltenham Festival was met with dramatic proceedings after Irish amateur Declan Queally was allegedly racially abused by Nico De Boinville. The allegations came in the aftermath of the Turners Novices’ Hurdle, where a handful of riders were suspended for their misconduct at the start.
With the jockeys jostling for position in a 21-runner field, the starter was blatantly reluctant to let them proceed. TV footage saw De Boinville furious with Queally, shouting at him to ‘get back’. Speaking to ITV Racing afterwards regarding the frustrations of the start, Queally stated: “being abused by an English jockey, Nico De Boinville, not very nice. I’m an amateur, I’m coming over here riding in front of my kids. Horrific.”
Immediately after, Matt Chapman prompted De Boinville for a comment on the start. In response to Queally’s protest, De Boinville stated “maybe he should look in the mirror.”
“Everyone was at fault and I was just rooting for myself” – Declan Queally
Following on from the incident, the Racing Post spoke to Declan Queally who noted: “I was boxing for my position down the inside and there was a lot of general bunching going on. It was competitive down there and I got repeated racial abuse from Nico de Boinville. I was coming in around the corner and then he called me a f*****g p***k a couple of times in front of the ITV camera.
“I just didn’t talk back to him, thankfully I didn’t open my mouth. He tried to single me out as if I was the one causing the hassle. When he was shouting, he was picking on me when trying to hold his position.”
Queally continued, claiming he was singled out by Nico De Boinville due to his amateur status. “Everyone was at fault and I was just rooting for myself. There was no need for it. None of the other lads would do it because they know you can’t just single out an Irish amateur rider. It’s not fair. It was very unprofessional
“Jack Kennedy or Paul Townend would know I’m as entitled to be there as much as they are. It’s competitive, so they wouldn’t single out someone because they’re an amateur.”
Jack Kennedy, Danny Gilligan and Darragh O’Keeffe were suspended alongside Declan Queally for their antics at the start. While the nature of the abuse from De Boinville is yet to be determined, the alleged racial comments directed toward
Queally’s complaint will no doubt prompt a thorough investigation from the BHA.