Greyhound racing mourns death of Gary Ralph after quarantine debacle

Less than four weeks after being told he must quarantine in a hotel room following brain cancer surgery, Gary Ralph has died.

Less than four weeks after being told he must quarantine in a hotel room following brain cancer surgery, Queenslander Gary Ralph has died.

A media campaign forced the hand of a heartless Palaszczuk Government after Ralph was told he (and partner Wendy Child) would be restricted to a motel at a time when the former licenced pilot needed to be at home and resting comfortably for his ongoing treatment.

Gary Ralph, pictured with his wife Wendy, has died after suffering brain cancer.

“Gary was in dire straits … we all knew he would not recover from his brain cancer yet the way he was treated was appalling,” a close family friend said.

“He was a proud man, a strong person and it was just heartbreaking to see him so upset by the Queensland Government’s hard line on the COVID-19 quarantine.

“In the end, it got him – we are all so upset.

“The last month has been very tough. He and Wendy suffered greatly with the emotion of the past few weeks.”

Gary raced champion greyhounds, had an engineering background, was a licensed pilot and an avid golfer.

Gary Ralph and wife Wendy.

Brain surgeon Charlie Teo.

His best greyhounds included two-time Ladies Bracelet winner Gold Spring and 1997 Melbourne Cup winner Roanokee – later a very successful stud dog in Ireland.

Sadly, his final days will be remembered for all the wrong reasons.

He fought bravely to buy time.

The October 31 Queensland State election result is but hours away.

Gary Ralph’s pre-poll vote won’t change too much but the sentiment behind it is loud – and crystal clear.

Originally published as Greyhound racing mourns death of Gary Ralph after quarantine debacle