By Bill Finley
It was not hard to expect the worst when apprentice jockey Mauro Cedillo went down in a May 1 spill at Thistledown. It was as frightening a spill as you could ever see and it appeared that he had been trampled by one, if not more horses, after being thrown to the track. He was taken to the intensive care unit at Cleveland's MetroHealth Medical Center and was on a ventilator while heavily sedated.
But less than a week after the spill, the 24-year-old apprentice from Guatemala is in the midst of a remarkable recovery and his agent, Luis Quinones, reports that Cedillo is “going to be ok.”
That was part of a text message that Quinones sent the TDN Monday in which he gave an update on his jockey's status.
“I just want to let you know that Mauro Cedillo was taken off the ventilator (Sunday) and he was breathing on his own,” the text read. “He stood up and was walking good today and he was moving his hands. Everything is going to be ok, according to the doctors. God answered all the prayers.”
Things are going so well that Quinones is hopeful that Cedillo will ride again.
So Happy to see Mauro Cedillo with a smile 😃💪🏾GOD It's awesome!🙏🏾 thank you everyone for all the prayers … pic.twitter.com/30If9dxkng
— Guillermo Rodríguez (@GRodriguez1312) May 7, 2023
“He has no other injuries,” he wrote in a follow-up text. “He got very lucky. He will make a full recovery, the doctors said, and his plan is to ride again. But he will have to be 100%. It will take time but he says he wants to ride again.”
Cedillo was riding Spectacular Road (Road Ruler) in the day's first race when his mount stumbled entering the turn, throwing the rider to the track. At the behest of the jockeys, Thistledown canceled the rest of that day's card.
The 24-year-old Guatemalen native has been riding since 2021 and has 101 career wins, including 23 this year.
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