SA racing figures pay tribute to jockey Mel Tyndall who lost her life in Darwin race fall
The SA racing community is still coming to terms with the death of beloved Murray Bridge jockey Melanie Tyndall in Darwin as veteran figures pay tribute to the ‘remarkable young woman’.
- Ex-Murray Bridge jockey dies in NT race tragedy
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“She was like a second daughter to us.”
South Australian veteran trainer Gary Searle has paid tribute to ex-Murray Bridge jockey Melanie Tyndall, who died in a race fall in Darwin on Saturday.
Tyndall’s passing cast a sombre mood on the South Australian Racing Awards on Saturday night where the industry was in mourning rather than celebrating.
Tyndall, 32, died in Royal Darwin Hospital after she fell when her horse clipped heels in the third race at Darwin’s Fannie Bay racecourse.
From Murray Bridge, Tyndall started her riding career in SA with and was apprentice to Gawler trainer Searle before moving to Darwin.
Her former boss was still trying to come to terms with the tragic news.
“It’s just a shocking feeling, I still can’t believe it,’’ Searle said.
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“Mel was here for about two years and with opportunities she rode her first city winner for us before moving to Darwin.
“She struggled with her weight but to her credit was still able to ride 150 winners and getting into the police force was an amazing achievement.
“Punters are quick to talk through their pockets when a jockey rides a bad race, but these are the times that it hits home just how dangerous the sport is.’’
Tyndall, who joined the NT police force two years ago, is the second SA jockey to die in a Darwin race fall after Simone Montgomerie was killed after falling on Darwin Cup Day in 2013.
The racing industry was still grieving the loss of Mikaela Claridge, who was killed following a trackwork fall at Cranbourne in Victoria less than 36 hours earlier.
Andrew O’Toole, chief executive of Thoroughbred Racing Northern Territory, said Tyndall’s fall on Saturday at first seemed innocuous.
“It’s really hard to take when we lose one of our own,” O’Toole told Sky Thoroughbred Racing.
“We are a small community of less than 20 jockeys.
“It seemed Melanie clipped heels and was attended to immediately.
“She was conscious and we were hopeful she would be OK.
“But she got to Royal Darwin Hospital and unfortunately passed away.”
O’Toole said the 32-year-old combined riding with being a constable in the NT police force.
“Melanie was a remarkable young lady,” he said.
“She had been riding since 2012. She gave it away in 2017 to join the police force.
“She became a constable and then made a comeback. She was remarkable balancing both jobs.”
Former Adelaide jockey and current Sky Racing presenter Libby Hopwood, who was involved in a fall the claimed the life of Caitlin Forrest in a Murray Bridge race fall in 2014, said it was harsh reminder of the dangers involved in racing.
“Simply lost for words. Sometimes the price of the industry seems too high,’’ Hopwood said.
Group 1 winning Adelaide jockey Dom Tourneur was another struggling to come to terms with another tragic loss.
Acting Northern Territory Police Commissioner Michael Muray said Tyndall was a respected member of the Casuarina Police Station.
“This is an incredibly difficult time for her partner, family, friends, colleagues and the wider police family,’’ he said.