Italian jockey Stefano Cherchi dead aged just 23 two weeks after fall in Australia

Italian jockey Stefano Cherchi has died just two weeks after suffering internal bleeding when he fell from a horse during a race in Canberra, Australia.

The devastating news was confirmed in a post from New South Wales Jockeys Association, with a statement reading: "With deep sadness, the Cherchi family have announced their beloved son Stefano passed away peacefully today. The family are very grateful for the love, prayers and messages sent by the racing community across the world."

Cherchi won over 100 races in the UK, most of those wins were on horses trained by Marco Botti, who is also from Italy. The Sardinian jockey's last race in Britain was in November at Chelmsford. The 23-year-old had moved to Australia earlier this year. During the race at Canberra, three jockeys, including Stefano, fell off their horses. The other two jockeys, Jeff Penza and Shaun Guymer, were okay, but Cherchi needed help right away and went to the hospital.

Follow Record Sport on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for all of the up-to-the minute breaking news, video and audio on the SPFL, the Scotland national team and beyond.

You can also follow our dedicated Rangers and Celtic podcast pages and sign up to our newsletters to make sure you never miss a beat throughout the season. We've also entered the world of WhatsApp with our Rangers community and Celtic community up and running. Follow NOW to get your club's latest breaking news and transfer gossip directly to your phone.