Fitting send off for John Thomas The death of renowned amateur jockey John Thomas McNamara, three years after being paralysed in a racecourse fall, will not be in vain, mourners have said. Hundreds of family, friends and leading lights from the world of racing turned out to pay respects in the village of Manister, Co Limerick, near the rider's home and stables. Known as JT to all, including punters, the 41-year-old respected horseman was said to have lived his last years with strength, courage and determination after breaking his neck in a fall at the Cheltenham Festival in 2013. Sir Anthony McCoy, a friend and former champion jockey, echoed the sentiments of owner JP McManus who said his death will ultimately help other injured jockeys. "JP's right about that. His life, it hasn't been lost in vain," the retired jockey said. "A lot of good came out of it. A lot of people got brought together." McCoy was among dozens of jockeys, trainers, breeders and others from the racing fraternity who gathered at the little white chapel in a part of rural Ireland synonymous with thoroughbred racing and breeding. A hugely successful amateur and rider of 600 winners, McNamara's contemporaries considered him to be as skilled a horseman as virtually any professional. His widow Caroline revealed just how deep those passions ran in a humorous yet moving tribute. "You always knew where you stood with John. He was straight, witty, honest and extremely direct," she said. Recalling the birth of their second child, son Harry, she said: "He was more concerned on how long the labour would be as he needed to be in Punchestown that afternoon to ride L'Ami. "I'm still wondering which he was more delighted (about), the win or Harry." Mourners openly cried as the young son read a poignant prayer of the faithful. "Thank you God for my dad," Harry said. "We ask the angels to take good care of you. We love you dad." Harry and his siblings Dylan and Olivia bade their own farewell by placing single white roses onto his coffin as the burial took place. Ms McNamara told mourners the tributes over the last week were a testament to her husband, "even though he could be quite grumpy at times, he seemed to be well liked". She also paid tribute to the work of Irish Injured Jockeys, the Irish Turf Club and Britain's Injured Jockeys Fund. And she spoke about her husband's capacity to cope with his paralysis. "There were many, many difficult days but his sheer determination and strength of character gave him three years and four months to spend with us and allowed Dylan, Harry and Olivia to form precious memories," she said. Ms McNamara ended her eulogy with a hint of what might have been. "I never knew that the only person John was afraid of was me," she said. "It's a pity I wasn't aware of this sooner as I could have used it to my advantage and had a few more wins myself."
