IPOH,  21 Jan 2009

David McGillivray, chief stipendiary steward of Malaysia, was attacked by two men on a motorcycle who slashed his forearm with a machete at a carpark in Ipoh yesterday.

The attack, just after he had lunch at a restaurant on Jalan Raja Musa Aziz, inflicted a deep cut on his left forearm. He underwent a four-hour operation and is now in a stable condition at the Ipoh Specialist Medical Centre (ISMC).

According to ISMC medical director Dato Dr Fadzli Cheah, the muscles, tendons, ulnar nerve and arteries on McGillivray's arm were severed during the attack.

A statement from the Malayan Racing Association said a police report was lodged and the Malaysian police is investigating into the incident.

It is now immediately known if the attacked is linked to his job. Since his return to the Malaysian scene last year, a record number of riders have been hauled up and disqualified for running foul of the rules of racing.

Record fines were also meted out to a number of trainers in relation to horses returning positive urine tests.