Top jockey Wayne Lordan rode the winner of the 1,000 Guineas just four days after his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, according to a personal account shared by his wife Carey-Ann Lordan on Instagram.
Diagnosis and Emotional Turmoil
Carey-Ann, 41, a mother of two and owner of a PR consultancy, discovered a lump in her breast while showering last autumn. After a GP referral, she underwent a mammogram, ultrasound, and biopsy. She recalled, “I went out to the car and I bawled my eyes out. I was writing my own obituary. Like I knew I was in trouble.”
On April 29, during the busy Guineas Festival week at Newmarket, she received the results. Surgeon Seamus Murphy told her it was cancer. “I couldn't believe it, even though I kind of knew that I was in trouble; I didn't think I was in that much trouble,” she said.
Wayne Lordan's Response and Victory
Only the couple knew the news initially. Wayne, number two jockey to Ryan Moore in Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle team, processed the news quietly. “He spent about three days painting a fence,” Carey-Ann said. “He's just the loveliest guy of all time, and unfortunately he couldn't fix this.”
Just four days after the diagnosis, on Saturday of that week, Wayne traveled to England and rode True Love to victory in the 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket. Carey-Ann saw symbolism in the win: “It kind of showed me he can compartmentalise, he can do the job, and that True Love will win on the end, you know, as long as we stick together, so that was pretty cool.”
Surgery and Fundraising
Carey-Ann underwent a lumpectomy on June 4, the eve of the Epsom Derby meeting. “I kind of made a pledge that once I’d had my surgery I was going to come out of the closet per se and raise awareness as well as raise funds publicly,” she said. “I had my surgery on June 4 and as far as I was concerned once I woke up I was cancer free. The surgery went well. The tumour was 1.5cm of which the cancer was 1cm so we are talking really early, really small and I am really, really lucky.”
She also had pre-cancer cells removed. To support Breast Cancer Ireland, she undertook a walking challenge, aiming for 150km. By completion, she had raised €16,800.
Continued Success on the Track
Wayne Lordan, who won the Epsom Derby for the first time in 2025, has had a stellar season, also winning the Irish 1,000 Guineas and the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot in June. Despite his wife’s health battle, he has continued to fulfill his riding engagements for O’Brien.
