(Reuters) - Italian jockey Stefano Cherchi has died at the age of 23, two weeks after sustaining a head injury following a fall at a race in Canberra, the New South Wales Jockeys Association said on Wednesday.
Cherchi, who rode over 100 winners in the United Kingdom before moving to Australia, had suffered internal bleeding following the incident on March 20 and had been transported to a hospital.
"With deep sadness, the Cherchi family have announced their beloved son Stefano passed away peacefully today," the New South Wales Jockeys Association posted on social media platform X.
"The family are very grateful for the love, prayers and messages sent by the racing community across the world."
The British Horseracing Authority also paid their respects to Cherchi.
"Our thoughts are with his friends, family, and everyone who has had the pleasure of working with him," they posted on X. "The entire racing industry will be in mourning after the loss of such a talented young man."
(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru)
