Killed teen’s mum said safety measures should have been implemented sooner

The mother of a teenager who died in a horse riding competition three years ago, says she’s disappointed by the slow rollout of potentially lifesaving safety measures across the sport.

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The mother of a teenager who died in a horse riding competition says she’s disappointed by the slow rollout of potentially lifesaving safety measures across the sport.

Equestrian Australia has mandated body protectors must be worn in cross country events and all riders’ helmets must be “tagged” to ensure they meet safety standards from July 1.

But mum Charlotte Inglis said the measures, introduced after the death of her 17-year-old daughter Olivia in 2016, could have been implemented sooner with a more transparent timeline.

Olivia died when her horse Coriolanus fell on top of her jumping a fence at a cross-country event in Scone three years ago.

Olivia Inglis was killed while competing an equestrian competition. Picture: Supplied

Her mum Charlotte said the safety measures following her daughter’s death should have been implemented sooner. Picture: AAP Image/Peter Rae

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Concerns about how risk is managed in the dangerous sport have been raised at an ongoing inquest into the deaths of Olivia, and fellow rider Caitlyn Fischer, 19, who was also killed just weeks later when her horse failed to clear a jump at a competition in Sydney.

A respected rider in her own right, Mrs Inglis told The Daily Telegraph the family supported all safety improvements but felt Equestrian Australia should have done more in the immediate aftermath of her daughter’s death.

“We would have liked to have seen a much faster response, and we would have liked to have seen a timeline that indicated when they were going to be able to achieve the recommendations from their own report,” she said.

Olivia during a competition in 2016. Picture: Stephen Mowbray

After the teens’ deaths the Equestrian Australia introduced compulsory “frangible” devices on cross-country jumps, which reduce the risk of a fall if the horse does not clear the obstacle.

“The technology should have been introduced before these accidents,” Mrs Inglis said.

Frangible pins, which allow a fence to collapse on contact to help prevent a horse from falling, have been mandatory in the UK since 2006.

Mrs Inglis said Australia was also behind in ensuring competitions had sufficiently qualified medical practitioners on site.

The inquest heard a medic at the Scone event “struggled” with equipment designed to keep Olivia breathing and it took about 20 minutes for a doctor to arrive after her accident.

In the UK at least one doctor, two paramedics and one ambulance must be on site during equestrian events.

Caitlyn Fischer was also killed only weeks after Olivia’s tragic death. The inquest resumes in July.

Olivia’s father Arthur said he hoped the inquest would also formalise the chain of responsibility between Equestrian Australia, state bodies such as Equestrian NSW and event organisers.

“Who’s actually supervising and governing the various aspects, that would be good to understand and clear up so there’s … a system where everyone knows what their job is,” he said.

The Inglis family is due to make a statement on the impact of Olivia’s death when the Sydney inquest resumes in July.

“It’s difficult to put that out there for us, because we’re quite a close knit little family, but we love and miss Olivia everyday,” Mrs Inglis said.

EQUESTRIAN DANGER REMAINS

FALLS in equestrian events have continued to increase despite heightened safety awareness after the deaths of two teen girls.

There were 20,903 starts in Equestrian Australia eventing competitions last year, of which 1,123 – or 5.37 per cent – endedin a fall, according to a report by Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI).

The fall rate was up from 5.34 per cent in 2016, the year 17-year-old Olivia Inglis and 19-year-old Caitlyn Fischer died afterfalling while competing at NSW events.

The data shows the rollout of safety measures, such as “frangible” devices on fences that collapse if a horse fails to clearthe obstacle and the appointment of a national safety officer, following the deaths of Ms Inglis and Ms Fischer has not yetimpacted overall fall rates.

Equestrian Australia chief executive Lucy Warhurst last week wrote to members outlining improved safety measures such as bettertraining, mandatory minimum standards of medical services and equipment were all introduced following the teens’ shockingdeaths.

“Making sure our sport is the safest it can be for the thousands of people who participate in equestrian sports every weekaround Australia is my priority,” she said.

Ms Warhurst attended the Gundagai Horse Trials on the weekend and encouraged riders and families to approach her with questionsor concerns.

A Daily Telegraph photographer at the event witnessed a female rider fall during competition.

The rider received first aid attention but did not suffer serious injuries.

In the last ten years the number of rotational horse falls, which carry a higher risk of injuries for horse and rider, hasdecreased from one in every 228 starts in 2007 to one in every 746 starters in 2018.

Originally published as Killed teen’s mum said safety measures should have been implemented sooner