NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. (July 9, 2012) – Jockeys’ Guild Chairman John Velazquez announced today that he is continuing to heal from a spill last month and expects to begin exercising horses in about a week.

Velazquez suffered a broken collarbone and trauma to his kidney on June 16 after the horse he was riding in the ninth race at Churchill Downs broke down. He was initially hospitalized at Norton Audubon Hospital in Louisville. He has since been under the care of Dr. Stephen O’Brien at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.

“I saw Dr. O’Brien today, and he said I was healing very well,” Velazquez said. O’Brien cleared Velazquez to start exercising horses next Monday at Saratoga.

“After that, I will just have to play it by ear,” Velazquez said. “Hopefully it won’t be too much longer before I can race again, but I want to make sure I’m strong enough to compete before I get back to riding.”