Gold Circle Pty (Ltd)

Today's Racing :

Mark Neisius bounces back at Kenilworth

MICHAEL CLOWER
Mark Neisius, staring death in the face this time two years ago, took his cancer-conquering to new heights when riding a double at Kenilworth last Friday.
It was only his fourth meeting since his return, he rode in all eight races and on Ubizo in Paul Barrett’s colours in the second (a 1 400m maiden) he showed all the relentless determination that enabled him to survive a brain tumour, as well as the radiation treatment that he found even worse than the dreaded disease. It was fitting that the winner should be trained by his old boss Glen Kotzen and, to underline his return to a career that has seen him ride over 500 winners, he scored again two races later on the Joey Ramsden-trained Shades Of Indigo for Gisela Burg and Martin Wickens in a 1 200m handicap.
Neisius, 36, hung up his boots on medical advice during his exhausting treatment and took an insurance payout that seemed to rule out all possibility of a return. He said: “I started putting on weight, my body got stronger, and I was enjoying riding work so I went back to the doctors for a second opinion.”
He also came to an agreement with the insurance company - “My policy covers me when I’m riding but not if I get cancer again. But the doctors now say that it was a localised thing and it shouldn’t come back.”
The only side-effect is a dry mouth – the saliva glands are not yet fully functional – and Neisius has decided to give the benefit of his experience to other cancer victims. “A lot of people give up the fight and the doctors have asked me to give talks. This I’m going to do.” Karl Neisius, Mark’s uncle, made it a great day for the family by also riding a double to take his tally for the season to 90. He delivered Captainoftheguard inside the final furlong of the 1 200m handicap (race five) for Vaughan Marshall and Alec Foster, and he also landed the finale (a mile maiden) on Varsfontein’s homebred Doublewood for Kotzen. A Daughters Legacy started at a generous 16-1 for the Ladies Mile- she had won last time out – and Grant van Niekerk,18, waved his whip in triumph as he brought the Lionel Cohen-bred Windrush filly home in front for his first Listed victory. “I get accused of over-racing my horses – sometimes it’s justified, other times it’s not,” said Riaan Van Reenen. “So I said to my co-owners George Eveleigh, Ferdy Louw, Owen Rosslind and Criselda Swart that we should give her a good rest in the summer as she was immature, and it’s paid off. The Final Fling Stakes is next.” Urbane Knight under Gerrit Schlechter followed up his Durbanville win in the 1 600m handicap (race six). The Paddy Kruyer-trained winner is part-owned by breeder Hyman Maisel. Chrysalis justified favouritism in the opening juvenile maiden but, according to Vaughan Marshall, the horse will still keep this week’s colt-ending appointment with the vet. MJ Byleveld, who rode him, also enjoyed a convincing win on Eastern Colours in Robert Zock’s silks in the 1 800m maiden (race three), the middle leg of Kotzen’s treble.

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