Unexpected bonus in suspension
MELBOURNE: Michelle Payne’s onemonth suspension may have been a blessing in disguise.
The Melbourne Cupwinning jockey was suspended last month after a test at Swan Hill on June 11 showed the presence of phentermine, an appetite suppressant, in her system.
The suspension prompted Payne to seek further advice over problems associated with her fall at Mildura in May last year that led to her losing part of her pancreas.
Payne said she went to see her surgeon, who found where he attached the pancreas to the stomach had sealed over with scar tissue.
‘‘I’m now on enzyme tablets . . .,’’
Payne told
RSN927.
‘‘I’m feeling so much better and looking back, I should have gone to him initially.
‘‘I had a followup with him a month after the injury and everything was fine but what eventually happened was the scar tissue started growing across and I had no idea that could possibly happen.
‘‘Imagine you are not getting the nutrients out of the food you are eating and you are working hard. It’s pretty tough, especially as a jockey because you don’t eat much as it is.
‘‘They can’t go in and remove the scar tissue so I’ll be on the tablets for the rest of my life.’’
Payne returns to racing at Flemington today for two rides. She last rode in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot on June 20. — AAP