Former Jockey Turcotte Involved in Accident
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Ron Turcotte, the Hall of Fame rider best known as the jockey for 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat, was taken to a hospital after he and another man were injured in a vehicle accident March 9 near Turcotte's home in northwestern New Brunswick.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police say Turcotte said the accident occurred when the van he was driving left the Trans-Canada Highway, hit a snowbank, and flipped onto its side on the pavement, The Canadian Press reports.
RCMP Const. Yannick Pelletier said the accident, which happened around 9:45 a.m. near Four Falls, is under investigation, but roads were covered in snow and slippery at the time.
Both men were taken to a hospital in Perth-Andover, but Pelletier could not comment on their conditions.
Turcotte rode Secretariat to victory in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont, all grade I, and Riva Ridge to win the 1972 Derby and Belmont, both for Meadow Stable.
Now 73, Turcotte was paralyzed from the waist down when he fell from a horse during a race at Belmont Park in 1978.