Roles' wife Rosanne notified friends on Thursday that the 61-year-old had passed away overnight "quickly and unexpectedly".

"He is (now) at peace from this horrendous disease," she said.

Roles suffered a stroke in April which had made life even more difficult.

Well-known throughout the Deloraine community, Roles had a strong association with the local football club, serving as a trainer and manager until his MND symptons worsened.

He got great enjoyment from the club's 2020 premiership win and was pictured in his wheelchair celebrating with the players.

However he will be best remembered for his long involvement in thoroughbred racing which saw him inducted into the Hall Of Fame last year.

He spent 32 years as a trainer winning countless races.

Historian Craig Kettle researched Roles' career and found almost 100 of his wins were in feature or open-class races.

In Tasmania, he won four Newnham Cups, two Devonport Cups, two Deloraine Cups, the Longford, Sheffield and Easter Cups, the Tasmanian Derby, two Gold Sovereigns and 10 Grand National steeples and hurdles.

In Victoria, his horses won on every metropolitan track and were ridden to victory by champion jockeys such as Greg Childs, Darren Gauci and Glen Boss.

His greatest love was jumps racing and he won some of the country's biggest hurdle and steeple events.

He considered two jumps wins as his career highlights.

In May 1995, Inchgower, ridden by Tasmanian Craig Hedditch, won the inaugural Galleywood Hurdle at Warrnmbool and later the same year won the Melbourne Cup Day Hurdle at Flemington.

"I won 19 races with Inchgower who was one of the state's top gallopers (on the flat) before turning to hurdling later in his career," Roles said.

"He then went on to be a successful show-jumper so he is very special to us."

Roles retired from full-time training in 2012 to pursue a career in nursing, a decision inspired to some extent by a life-threatening injury sustained by his daughter Erin in a fall from a horse from six years earlier.

Erin was on life-support for seven weeks as Roles and his family sat by her bedside.

Roles himself was no stranger to hospitals and the need for nursing care.

During his training career, when he rode his own horses in trackwork, he broke his neck, hip, leg, shoulder, nose and ribs in various accidents.

Roles maintained an interest in racing throughout his illness and, according to Rosanne, was "very excited" when a horse he part-owned, Needadollarbill, won in Hobart last month.

Although he reached the pinnacle of his profession, Terry Roles always remained modest and unassuming.

He once said: "You're only king for a day in racing and you make the most of it when you're on top."

He would probably say the same about life.

Roles is survived by wife Rosanne and daughters Erin and Sophie.

His funeral service will be at the Deloraine Rotary Pavilion next Wednesday at 1pm.

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