Fallon suffers nasty fall

[my miss storm cat]

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FALLON FALL DRAMA AT LONGCHAMP


By PA Sport Staff


Kieren Fallon suffered a nasty fall aboard Vodafone Derby second Eagle Mountain in the Juddmonte Grand Prix de Paris at Longchamp.

Aidan O'Brien's Rock Of Gibraltar colt was sent off the favourite for the Group One contest but only lasted around four furlongs before unseating Fallon.

Eagle Mountain was in behind Sagara but encountered interference with subsequent winner Zambezi Sun, who appeared to veer slightly right into Fallon's mount.

The Irish rider was taken off the track on a stretcher wearing a neck-brace.


Fallon's fall compounded a testing week for the six-time champion jockey, who on Thursday formally pleaded not guilty to a charge of conspiracy to defraud in connection with an alleged plot to fix the results of races.



Although he is still banned from riding in Britain, the 42-year-old has been in fine form since his return from suspension after testing positive for a metabolite of a prohibited substance in France.



Having marked his return from a six-month ban with a winner on his first ride back at Tipperary on June 7, Fallon also landed a Group One race aboard Mountain High in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud.

Most recently, the jockey was also seen at his best aboard O'Brien's Peeping Fawn, who landed the Group One Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh a fortnight ago.



Although inextricably linked to Fallon's spill, Khalid Abdullah's Zambezi Sun emerged a most impressive winner of this competitive mile-and-a-half test.



The race was won last year by Arc hero Rail Link, who is also owned by Abdullah.



Stephane Pasquier bided his time aboard Pascal Bary's Dansili colt, but he cranked up the gears five from home and slipped into a more prominent position behind the front-running Axxos, who eventually finished a gallant second.



The trailblazing German raider was swamped inside the last as Zambezi Sun bounded clear to record an emphatic success.



VC Bet were most impressed and cut the winner from 16-1 to 8s for the Arc.



Celebrations were put on ice, however, as the local stewards called an inquiry into the race.

O'Brien lodged an appeal against the riding of Pasquier and his part in Fallon's fall.



Thierry Gillet, rider of third-placed Sagara, also contested the ride of Andrasch Starke, who partnered runner-up Axxos.