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The Liverpudlian-born jockey Martin Dwyer has announced his retirement from the saddle after failing to recover from a serious knee injury.

Dwyer, who has been on the sidelines since March 2022 following a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his knee, has undergone several operations over the past year.

However, following a spell of unsuccessful operations, the popular weighing room figure announced he would no longer be returning to the saddle.     

"It's tough saying it out loud, I've got my head around it, I've known for quite a while now I've been struggling with the injury," Dwyer told Racing TV.

"I've thrown the kitchen sink at the rehab. I went to see the surgeon again when I had another operation two months ago and he said it's not going to be stable enough or strong enough to ride professionally.

"It is what it is, and I've just got to get on with it.

"It's been tough, obviously. I've been in pain for a long time, it just throbs constantly but I've been in good hands and the team at Oaksey House have been brilliant."

Looking ahead to the future, he said: "I'm getting back to some normality, but I've just got to accept my career is over and I've just got to get on with things. It's tough because I'm not finishing on my terms.

"I'd like to go out like Frankie [Dettori] and do a world tour, but I'd probably be at Wolverhampton and Southwell!

"It's been a tough year or so, but it's time to move on to the next chapter. It's been a journey that has been unbelievable."

Dwyer enjoyed some fine moments in the saddle across a career that amassed over 1,500 winners. Notable successes included Epsom Derby glory onboard Sir Percy for Marcus Tregoning in 2006 and Epsom Oaks success on Andrew Balding's Casual Look, while in more recent years he landed the King Edward VII Stakes, Great Voltigeur and Coronation Cup on Pyledriver.