Amateur jockey Lauren Keen-Hawkins 'showing signs of improvement' after Worcester fall

Amateur jockey Lauren Keen-Hawkins was able to communicate with family members for brief periods on Friday having shown signs of improvement from a head injury she sustained a week ago.

Keen-Hawkins, 22, was taken to a hospital in Birmingham on Sunday after being knocked unconscious in a fall from Faerie Cutlass at the third-last in the 2m4f handicap hurdle at Worcester. She was moved out of intensive care on Thursday but had yet to regain full consciousness.

A statement from the Injured Jockeys Fund read: "Following her fall at Worcester on Sunday, Lauren remains at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. She was unconscious for an extended period of time and, as would be expected after this, Lauren has now entered a stage termed Post Traumatic Amnesia (PTA).

"This means she is sleeping a lot of the time, with bouts of confusion, but can recognise and communicate with family members for brief periods.

"Her parents Philip and Karen report that she is showing signs of improvement. They would like to thank the hospital team for their amazing care of Lauren, and are also extremely grateful for the overwhelming amount of support they have received.

"It is likely that Lauren will have an MRI scan in the next few days to further assess her injury."