Brilliant young West Australian harness racing driver Emily Suvaljko will be sidelined for at least the next month after being involved in a shocking race fall.
Twenty-two-year-old Suvaljko, of Jelorup, near Bunbury, was unseated moments before the field was to be released in race two at Perth’s Gloucester Park last Friday night (June 9).
Stewards reported that her horse Bettors Destroya blundered and fell prior to the start.
Suvaljko was dislodged from the seat and then hit hard by her own sulky when it moved sharply in a clockwise direction. There was also contact from behind where Maddison Brown, driving Im Themightylucy, had nowhere to go and she was tossed several metres to the inside of the track.
Also involved in the scrimmage was Emily’s father Shannon who after being dislodged, held onto the reins of Shehadi and was dragged some distance before he was able to pull up the horse.
“After a curator grabbed my horse, I ran back to Emily who was unconscious. After a while she came around and in typical-Emily fashion, wanted to get up and walk,” Shannon said.
“I got a few scrapes, while Maddison was bruised down one side. But we are both fine.”
Both Shannon and Maddison will be able to fulfill their driving duties at Gloucester Park tonight (June 16), but Emily, faces a longer road to recovery after an overnight stay in hospital following the incident.
“The doctors said if she had the collarbone pinned, she would be back sooner than allowing the injury to heal naturally,” Shannon said.
“She’s been having a great season and only just come back after spending a month in South Africa with her grandparents.”
Emily landed the 500th winner of her short career in February and this season has nearly 50 winners.
Brown, 27, had a recent Pinjarra double to take her to over 250 wins. She is the youngest daughter of Colin Brown, one of WA’s all-time great trainers and drivers.
Shannon has also been driving in fine form, notching his 100th winner for the season a fortnight ago, and was advised this week he will represent WA with Gary Hall Jnr in the Australian Drivers Championship series in Tasmania in October.
It wasn’t the only incident for the weekend, with another driver seriously injured at the Mooroopna Cup meeting at Shepparton two nights later.
Popular trainer-driver Charlene Gusman was thrown high into the air when her horse Watch It Happen went into a gallop around the home turn, before nose-diving heavily into the track in the final race of the night.
Gusman was flung to the inside of the track, then propelled even further when her race sulky swung around and crashed down on top of her. She was taken to hospital and doctors found four broken ribs.
“I’ll be out for at least six weeks. I’m in a lot of pain because apart from the ribs, I’ve got muscle and tissue damage to my right arm. I also hit my head and had a few little vision problems early on,” she said.
“I knew I was in trouble when the horse started going down. The sulky flipped me and then a shaft hit the top of me. I’ve been injured before at home, but that was my first race fall.
“I was a bit angry that I couldn’t get to the Melton trials on Tuesday because I had a 2yo going around, along with my good one Hes Charlies Angel back at the trials. My partner David (Miles) drove them, and they both went super and won, so that was nice.”
Gusman was released from hospital yesterday and she will surely get a boost when Hes Charlies Angel (Sweet Lou) resumes racing as he’s a smart type. The pair combined to win a semi of the VicBred Super Series at Melton last December.
Gusman was full of praise for the medics, the Shepparton club and those who were still there for the last race of the night.
“Everyone has been great, including Cody Rauchenberger, Wayne Potter and others,” she said.
by Terry Gange, for Harnesslink