Walker diagnosed with cancer

Bobby Walker Jr., the retired rider who was once a fixture at Louisiana Downs, has been diagnosed with testicular cancer, according to Jim Wells of the media department at Canterbury Park. Walker is a jockey agent at the Minnesota track. He told Wells his goal is to return home to West Monroe, La.

Walker, 53, won nearly 3,000 races in his career. He was in Fairview Southdale Hospital in Edina, Minn., on Thursday, and in order to get back to Louisiana, he will need medical transportation that will cost between $5,000 and $10,000, his daughter, Brittany, told Wells.

“Louisiana Downs is planning on trying to do something, trying to put together a fundraiser with the jockeys of some kind,” she said.

The cancer was diagnosed last month after Walker started having back pain.

Walker won the first race of his career at Louisiana Downs on Oct. 10, 1979. Overall, he won 2,980 races from 21,559 starts for career mount earnings of $35,624,088. Walker’s wins include 190 stakes victories from 1,334 stakes starts. He rode throughout Louisiana and Texas and also spent time at Ak-Sar-Ben and Canterbury.