Rider crushed by horse identified

(Updated) A veteran rider, and his three-year-old horse died at Woodbine Racetrack this morning in what officials are calling a “freak accident.”

It was a normal morning. There was no hint that anything was wrong with the rider, or the horse.

And yet, just before 6:00 this morning, Tawney’s Wish, an Ontario-bred filly, bolted, pitched sharply to the left, and crashed through this fence. The rider, Mourad Boudraa, 42, was thrown violently to the right, striking his head, as he went down:

Boudraa was a freelance exercise rider. Highly regarded, and in constant demand by trainers who knew and respected his work. Initially it was reported that he was crushed by the horse, but trainers who saw the accident said that was not the case.

Boudraa died at the scene. The horse was dead before it hit the ground, apparently suffering a massive heart attack. Veterinarians at the University of Guelph will examine the remains to confirm that suspicion.

Boudraa had a wife and a young daughter, and chaplain Shawn Kennedy says the tight knit track community is in shock.