Former trainer Eddie Lo Kwok-chow died yesterday from a brain haemorrhage. He was 49.
According to friend Alex Wong Yu-on, who was at Lo's bedside when he was declared dead at 4.40pm, Lo had been visiting his mother in Causeway Bay on Tuesday when he slipped, fell and hit his head.
'He went to a doctor, had eight stitches inserted into a head wound and returned home, but later complained of feeling unwell and went to Queen Mary Hospital to get himself checked out,' Wong said.
'He collapsed at the hospital, and everyone realised it was much more serious. Scans revealed a large clot and a massive haemorrhage. He never regained consciousness.'
Wong, one of 24 local trainers licensed by the Hong Kong Jockey Club, described Lo as a very popular character. 'When he was an apprentice jockey, he was in the same league as Tony Cruz,' Wong said, drawing parallels with the trainer who was champion jockey six times before becoming a successful handler.
Lo rode 68 winners between 1973 and 1980 before rising weight took its toll.