PrintWhen I think of the 2007 eventing season, there’s the full run of emotions—the ecstatic feeling of the Pan American Games team gold medal and the health of the sport overall. But these emotions are overshadowed by the tragic loss of three lives in the past 13 months here in the United States, as well as other serious accidents.
These accidents require us to all reevaluate the sport, our own participation in the discipline and competing at a public facility. This will be remembered as a year of conflict, a year where competitors were reawakened to the fact that there’s a risk to competing in a sport where there’s speed involved.
This situation should be more important to trainers and coaches who really do have an impact on the lives of their clients, and the trust involved between client and trainer is more important than most people think.
As we look into the past as a base for a vision for the future, what can we do? What are the inherent thoughts, processes and actual changes that can be a benefit for the competitors at large?
First, let’s take the issue apart.
The accidents that have happened all primarily occur when a horse falls. The percentage of people in danger when they fall with the horse is much higher than if they fall by themselves.
This situation is really an issue for riders at the preliminary level and higher. A fence below 1 meter doesn’t create the same physics that a 1.10-meter fence does when a horse falls over it.
The causes of these serious falls are varied, from falls at speed to slow rotational falls, and all types have happened in this past year worldwide.
When you start to look at the issue there are really three different areas that need to be studied:
• What can prevent a fall?
• Tracking the information after a horse or rider falls.
• Using that information, and information about the medical
availability and response to a fall.
I have to say, certainly in the United States and generally around the world, the medical response to serious falls has been top notch and well organized. Several years ago plans were drawn and put into place that raised the level of medical coverage, and this change has had a positive impact on the sport.
The information gathered following the accidents is a little harder to ascertain. There are state laws governing information gathered after a tragic accident. But, harder still, how does an organization use the information acquired from a fall? For instance, how do an organization’s officials track injuries, such as concussions, which are relatively common injuries in our sport?
Currently, there’s no way for an upcoming competition’s organizer to know whether a competitor has had a concussion in the previous weeks. They don’t even know whether a competitor has had a fall at the previous week’s competition. This has to be corrected.
There are programs available that evaluate the severity of concussions, and after the facts are gathered, medical professionals may (or may not) recommend that a rider curtail his competitive schedule.
These accidents require us to all reevaluate the sport, our own participation in the discipline and competing at a public facility. This will be remembered as a year of conflict, a year where competitors were reawakened to the fact that there’s a risk to competing in a sport where there’s speed involved.
This situation should be more important to trainers and coaches who really do have an impact on the lives of their clients, and the trust involved between client and trainer is more important than most people think.
As we look into the past as a base for a vision for the future, what can we do? What are the inherent thoughts, processes and actual changes that can be a benefit for the competitors at large?
First, let’s take the issue apart.
The accidents that have happened all primarily occur when a horse falls. The percentage of people in danger when they fall with the horse is much higher than if they fall by themselves.
This situation is really an issue for riders at the preliminary level and higher. A fence below 1 meter doesn’t create the same physics that a 1.10-meter fence does when a horse falls over it.
The causes of these serious falls are varied, from falls at speed to slow rotational falls, and all types have happened in this past year worldwide.
When you start to look at the issue there are really three different areas that need to be studied:
• What can prevent a fall?
• Tracking the information after a horse or rider falls.
• Using that information, and information about the medical
availability and response to a fall.
I have to say, certainly in the United States and generally around the world, the medical response to serious falls has been top notch and well organized. Several years ago plans were drawn and put into place that raised the level of medical coverage, and this change has had a positive impact on the sport.
The information gathered following the accidents is a little harder to ascertain. There are state laws governing information gathered after a tragic accident. But, harder still, how does an organization use the information acquired from a fall? For instance, how do an organization’s officials track injuries, such as concussions, which are relatively common injuries in our sport?
Currently, there’s no way for an upcoming competition’s organizer to know whether a competitor has had a concussion in the previous weeks. They don’t even know whether a competitor has had a fall at the previous week’s competition. This has to be corrected.
There are programs available that evaluate the severity of concussions, and after the facts are gathered, medical professionals may (or may not) recommend that a rider curtail his competitive schedule.
