Irish jockey Queally says he was abused by De Boinville before Cheltenham race start

Nico de Boinville appeared to take issue with Declan Queally taking up a position near the rail at the start of the Turner's Novices Hurdle at Cheltenham

Irish jockey Declan Queally said he was abused by Nico de Boinville before the start of the Turner's Novices Hurdle on Day 2 at Cheltenham. Pics: ITV

Irish amateur jockey Declan Queally claimed he was abused by fellow rider Nico de Boinville before the start of the Turner's Novices' Hurdle, the opening race on Day 2 of the Cheltenham Festival.

Queally, who operates a small yard in Waterford with his father Declan Queally Snr, finished fifth on I'll Sort That while De Boinville came home second on Nicky Henderson's Act Of Innocence.

The start of the race, which featured a busy 21 runners, was delayed by a false start. 

"The start was a bit of a mess," Queally told ITV during their post-mortems with the losing jockeys. "Got tracked back further than I wanted to, but it's all right."

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Asked by Matt Chapman how frustrating those false starts can be for riders, Queally revealed more than expected: "Being abused by an English rider, Nico de Boinville, not very nice. I'm an amateur coming over here, riding in front of my kids - horrific."

"Being abused by an English rider, Nico de Boinville is not very nice" 👀

"I'm an amateur, I'm coming over riding in front of my kids. HORRIFIC" 😯

Declan Queally is NOT HAPPY with Nico de Boinville 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/ZooWaL1PDI

— ITV Racing (@itvracing) March 11, 2026

De Boinville followed shortly towards the weighing room door. 

"A bit frustrated. A few things went against us, but I'm happy in the main," he said.

Chapman informed De Boinville that Queally thought the start had been a bit "iffy".

"Maybe he should look in the mirror," said De Boinville.

In footage shown after the race, De Boinville appeared to take issue with Queally taking up a position near the rail at the start. 

"One person has as much right to be there as someone else," said AP McCoy. "Just because whoever you are doesn’t mean to say you should be in there. I don’t think Declan’s done much wrong. I don’t think one person is any more entitled to be there than another.”

Asked about the situation, Ruby Walsh said: "That’s the same Nico de Boinville who rode Jonbon last year and put his head on the tape. Maybe he needs to look in the mirror, too. You need a rolling start.

“I’ve said it for a long time. If they walk in front of a tape and then it moves in front of the horses, you’d have none of this drama.”

The stewards report of the race noted that Queally has lodged a complaint about the incident. Having heard evidence from both jockeys, the stewards adjourned the matter to obtain further evidence.

The report also stated that Queally, Jack Kennedy on Ballyfad, Danny Gilligan on Skylight Hustle, and Darragh O’Keeffe on Walks In June “had not approached the tape at a walk or a jig-jog thereby causing a false start, resulting in a standing start”. Kennedy and Queally were suspended for one day, and Gilligan and O’Keeffe, as it was their second offence in 12 months, for two days.

The race was won by the Paul Townend-ridden and Willie Mullins-trained King Rasko Grey.