LAURA Barry, the Limerick-born former jockey, has died after a long battle with cancer. She was just 25 and was due to get married today.

A graduate of the pony racing scene, she moved to Yorkshire to pursue a career as an apprentice jockey with trainer Richard Fahey.

She represented Ireland in the HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak World Apprentice Series in San Francisco and won the Prolinx Ladies Silver Championship, an award given for the highest strike rate in a season.

Her career was taking off when illness struck. She started suffering pain in her leg two years ago and was quickly diagnosed with a rare and dangerous form of cancer that targeted the nerve ducts of the spine and nervous system.

The illness spread quickly and left her paralysed in her left leg, and so aggressive was the strand of cancer that there was no chemotherapy available. Instead, her family looked at other medicines abroad, but unfortunately little could be done.

Despite being effectively paralysed, she was still due to marry Ben Hamilton, brother of jockey Tony Hamilton, this weekend.

Speaking at Newmarket yesterday, Richard Fahey said: “She was a wonderful girl and will be truly missed. She was loved by everyone. She was a very tough girl, but had been suffering for a long time. She was just such a star and never complained. She was a very helpful and very kind person.”

Kildare trainer Denis Coakley, horse and pony racing correspondent for The Irish Field, said: “Laura won a lot of pony races, including at Dingle. She was competing against the likes of Colin Keane, Shane Kelly, Kevin Sexton, Shane Gray and my son, Ross, and she was well able to hold her own.

“She had a degree of success in England too but many of us lost touch with her, not knowing until last year she was battling cancer. There was some hope of a recovery at that time but sadly that did not come to pass.”