SARATOGA SPRINGS — An exercise rider at Saratoga Race Course died today after he was injured while training a horse Monday, New York Racing Association spokesman John Lee said.

Parker Buckley, 40, a rider for trainer Steve Asmussen, was injured on the Oklahoma training track. He was taken by ambulance to Saratoga Hospital and flown to Albany Medical Center.

Lee said he wasn't sure of the details of the accident or Buckley's injuries.

"It seems people have different stories as to what exactly happened," Lee said.

NYRA may put out a brief statement later about Buckley's death, he said.

Buckley, a former jockey, worked for Asmussen for the past 16 months.

It's the first fatal riding accident at the track since Sept. 19, 1996, when Elizabeth Russello, a horse owner and assistant trainer, was killed on the Oklahoma track when the horse she was riding reared and fell on her.