Grand National legend makes rare public appearance as he bravely battles ‘horrific existence’ after fall
GRAND NATIONAL legend Graham Lee made a rare public appearance at the races – as he continues to bravely battle a ‘horrible existence’ in a wheelchair.
The 2004 Aintree champ was at Doncaster on Sunday for the legends contest run in his honour.
https://twitter.com/AtTheRaces/status/1835636522554405040Lee, who won the world’s most famous race on 16-1 Amberleigh House, is confined to a wheelchair after a life-changing fall last year.
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The former jockey, 48, continues to undergo intensive treatment at a specialist spinal care unit after being crushed in the stalls at Newcastle.
Close friend AP McCoy was reduced to tears on live TV when discussing the impact Lee’s injuries had had on him earlier this year.
The 20-time champion jockey was more stoic in front of camera last weekend but described the ‘horrific existence’ his good pal now endures day-to-day.
He said: “People have no idea. It’s a horrific existence. There’s no way of dressing it up and telling you that he’s in good form and all that.
“When you can’t scratch your nose and it takes two-and-a-half hours in the morning to get out of bed – it’s just horrific.”
A JustGiving fund set up to aid Lee’s recovery has smashed the £200,000 mark.
And he continues to benefit from all the work carried out by the Injured Jockeys Fund.
McCoy also went into detail about how Lee’s friendship with former rival Richie McGrath has given him a new lease of life in the darkest of times.
“If you wanted to have a best friend, you’d want one like Richie.
“He sees him pretty much every day and speaks to him every day, he’s very lucky in that sense.
“But it’s horrific.”
The legends race was won in dramatic circumstances by former rider Sammy Jo Bell.
Something of a specialist in these contests for ex-jockeys, Bell nutted Paul Nicholls’ daughter Megan right on the line after she veered wildy left on the run-in.
Nicholls looked like she was home and hosed on 3-1 Terries Royale but Bell, on Richard Fahey’s 10-1 Harstwood, won it in the final strides.
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