An exercise rider died after a training accident at Churchill Downs early Saturday morning.

Daily Racing Form first reported that 42-year-old Odanis Acuna had been seriously injured by the time his horse blew out breeze before dawn broke down at both front legs. .

Churchill Downs confirmed the death of Acuna in a press release. The accident occurred near the end of the training session around 5:45 am, as the horse collapsed about one-sixteenth of a kilometer before the finish line, the statement said.

Acuna, a Cuban native and coaching coach for Kenny McPeek, was injured in the head and neck, McPeek told the Daily Racing Form.

According to the Churchill Downs release, the on-site emergency teams who treated Acuna believe that he died instantly.

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Acuna, nicknamed "Cuba" by her tour friends, had been working for McPeek for about 10 years and also for a local horse feed company, the press release said.

"Odanis was one of the hardest working guys you've ever met, he was realizing the American dream," McPeek said in his release. "He galloped for me in the morning and worked for the cattle feed company in the afternoon."

According to McPeek, the horse was the port of New York, a Verrazano colt 2 years old and not started. The horse was to be euthanized, said the coach at the Daily Racing Form.

According to the press release, the training at Churchill Downs was canceled for the rest of the morning following Acuna's death.

The races will take place as planned at Churchill Downs on Saturday, with a minute of silence around 12:30. before the first race at 1 pm, the press release said.

Officials believe it was the first training accident at Churchill Downs, which resulted in the death of a physical training rider for several decades.

"The day is dark," said Kevin Flanery, president of Churchill Downs. "We express our deepest sympathies to the family, friends, colleagues and Odanis team from Coach Kenny McPeek's barn. Our hearts are with them in this difficult time of extreme pain. "

Sherry Stanley, executive director of the Churchill Downs Backside Learning Center, said that Acuna was the "hardest worker" who "always had a smile on his face."

"He was a wonderful and wonderful person," Stanley said in a statement. "His entire life was dedicated to bringing his wife and three Cuban sons here to Kentucky, he was about to complete the process of buying a house and completing the formalities. to get their green card. "

According to the Churchill Downs press release, a memorial service, funeral arrangements and fundraisers for the Acuna family are pending.

McPeek said that "Acuna" had little or nothing "when he started working for the coach and that he had saved money to buy a car and that" He was preparing to buy a house.

"It has been hard all day, every day," said McPeek in his release. "He has ridden a lot of my best horses for years and was a guy able to handle just about any horse you put him in. He was just a good guy and loved what he was doing. I'm just sick of this tragedy. "

Reach Billy Kobin at [email protected] or 502-582-7030.

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