[Hilary]

But there was the tribute to her in the recent USEA news, which for me prompted the 'wow, that is so sad, I kinda wonder what what happened" response.

Reading in one sentence how many times she and Poggio represented the US was really really remarkable.

People are curious beings. Whether that makes us caring or ignorant rubberneckers is entirely up to the discretion of the viewer, but we do wonder. Maybe, just maybe something that happened to someone else can save another life but if we never ask we'll never know.

I didn't get the impression the OP meant ill for Amy or her family, but was just asking.

[alternate_universe]

And knowing the exact cause of death for one out of the approximately three-quarters of a million people who die suddenly each year in this country helps . . . how?

If anyone is being a troll here it's you. There's nothing wrong with wanting to know how a person you admired passed away. The causes of deaths of all sorts of people are published in school books for heaven's sake. There's nothing morbid or nosy about it. You're making this into some sort of big deal that it was never intended to be.

Despite not being an eventer I too have wondered what happened to her. Depending on what happened there could be something to learn from it.

[deltawave]

Well, I guess I disagree. I think it's quite nosy and intrusive, personally. Anyone who wishes is quite within their rights to disagree with me in turn. Wanting to know is natural. Being sensitive enough to keep it to oneself is (IMO) doing the right thing. We do not HAVE to satisfy our every impulse.

Walk a mile in someone's shoes before assuming they are perfectly happy and comfortable with this sort of information about their dear one being casually discussed by strangers. Some are, some aren't.

[JmpR_1]

I'm going to side with the OP and some other posters side. AT was a professional athlete. I have lost count how many times I have read or seen on the news of other athletes, singers etc cause of death. She was a public figure just like the rest of them. I don't think we NEED to know what happened, but I think it would be helpful for the people who followed her career to know what happen.

[Where'sMyWhite]

while I don't necessarily think it is anyone's business, you will note if you Google that the initial reports of her death all seemed to at least insinuate that more on the cause of death would be made available when more was known, since it was sudden and unexpected.

She was what can be called an 'unattended death'. Those are usually sent to the coroner/medical examiner to determine means and manner of death. SOP. As noted previously, depending on state law, request the results.

I will admit to a brief moment of 'wow, wonder what happened'. Then moved to 'not my business really' and being sad that talented individual was lost. About what DW said...

[Rainier]

I don't think the eventing community needs to know ... unless it is related to a injury from riding/training horses. In that case it seems appropriate that the information and relevant details would be available to those that could benefit from that knowledge?

[Chall]

I don't think the eventing community needs to know ... unless it is related to a injury from riding/training horses. In that case it seems appropriate that the information and relevant details would be available to those that could benefit from that knowledge?

^This.
I think people are thinking how many concussions did she have, how recent was her last fall, was she taking more naps recently, complaining of headaches? They are worrying about themselves.
If an autopsy came out that said it was a genetic thing the interest would end.

Like trailer accidents people want to know what equipment was used, what the driver did etc, so they can avoid it themselves.

[cloudyandcallie]

If anyone is being a troll here it's you. There's nothing wrong with wanting to know how a person you admired passed away. The causes of deaths of all sorts of people are published in school books for heaven's sake. There's nothing morbid or nosy about it. You're making this into some sort of big deal that it was never intended to be.

Despite not being an eventer I too have wondered what happened to her. Depending on what happened there could be something to learn from it.

I totally agree with this poster. I think it was unnecessary to jump all over the OP for asking. We can learn a lot from the cause of death of others. E.g., when one of our atlanta homicide detectives was dying from breast cancer, he prepared his obit which included the COD. He was hoping that when men read his obit in the paper, they would go check out themselves for lumps. He wanted to save someone else's life.

We can often learn from the deaths of others. I worked with the medical examiners for over 20 yrs and learned a lot about diseases and injuries and how to recognize them and avoid them.

[riderboy]

It is interesting that for deltawave, myself and other healthcare professionals the release of any information regarding a patient's health history or medical care is absolutely verboten unless all the forms are signed in triplicate and the attorneys all nod their heads yes.. (HIPAA). But when we die, that all goes out the window. I don't think the OP meant any harm either, but it does seem like a personal matter for the family and not something that should be published in the newspaper like it is here.

[IFG]

Sorry Deltawave. Put me in the curious camp. My husband refers to me, and my work, as morbid. I am an epidemiologist. I feel that by studying the etiology of disease, we learn to prevent it in the future. Now, admittedly, most people are not looking to study AT's COD, but they can learn from it.

How many people have learned to be very careful to protect their heads and to avoid multiple concussions by learning of the morbidity and CODs of football players with numerous concussions?

How many people have learned to take better care of their asthma by hearing of sudden deaths due to asthma attacks? [I am thinking of the NYC Schools Head a number of years ago].

How many people have learned to eat better and heed the warning signs of heart disease after hearing of Bill Clinton's and Dick Cheney's bypass operations?

So, I think that if the AT's COD has potential public health impact, learning the cause may be helpful.

[lmlacross]

^This.
I think people are thinking how many concussions did she have, how recent was her last fall, was she taking more naps recently, complaining of headaches? They are worrying about themselves.
If an autopsy came out that said it was a genetic thing the interest would end.

You see the best in people. Perhaps I'm overly cynical, I think most were looking for something more dramatic or salacious, not something tied to riding. I don't think many people are truly "worrying about themselves" beyond the desire to satisfy their own curiosities.

[monstrpony]

Somehow, I think if knowing the cause of Amy's death would benefit the eventing community in a constructive way, then we would know what it was and those close to her would honor her by making sure that knowledge would prevent harm to others, however possible. I think, given the fact that we do NOT know, that there's a good chance it is not something we need to know, and probably something that her family would rather not share, which is their right.

[JSwan]

Somehow, I think if knowing the cause of Amy's death would benefit the eventing community in a constructive way, then we would know what it was and those close to her would honor her by making sure that knowledge would prevent harm to others, however possible. I think, given the fact that we do NOT know, that there's a good chance it is not something we need to know, and probably something that her family would rather not share, which is their right.

My thoughts exactly.

[JP60]

Good, privacy seeking people with someone close to them in the public eye don't seem to understand the Streisand Effect.

Had Amy Tryon been just another person, then this discussion would not exist. While privacy is important, even to public figures, there is a loss of that privacy that comes with the attention. The longer information like this remains hidden, the greater the interest for while society likes to trust, our desire to know is even greater. That desire is the foundation for speculation, rumor, even lies to try and fill in the gap.

I agree with those that talk about the idea of "knowing" being a prophylactic for other's prevention. I would guess that family members do not want reminders of her death so think "lets not talk about it" and it will go away. Not talking, not sharing is what keeps it in the public eye for the reason the OP posted, awareness of our own mortality. I shared with others (when asked) what happened with my Mom for I found that it helped me heal from the loss; talking about her death was hard, sharing memories of her life brought a sense of peace.

I would hope the family one day talks about what happened so they and those who knew her both private and public can heal and move on. Knowing does not dishonor her accomplishments or memories of who she was. Knowing makes her public life complete.

tl:dr Human's do not like mysteries, this is why we open the box or worry a knot till undone.

[takeone4theteam]

So, the official answer to the OP's question is that there is no information at this time. Great, she got her answer, is there a reason to continue the thread?

[deltawave]

Crud, COTH keeps crashing . . .

Knowing the cause of this one individual's death is no different than knowing the cause of a total stranger's death in the grand scheme of things, unless it was speculated that her death was due to a riding accident or something.

I don't think many people are truly "worrying about themselves" beyond the desire to satisfy their own curiosities.

Kind of what I am thinking. One person's opinion, valued at precisely the same as anyone else's.

[NeverTime]

Knowing the cause of this one individual's death is no different than knowing the cause of a total stranger's death in the grand scheme of things, unless it was speculated that her death was due to a riding accident or something.

There was some speculation to this effect. However, I agree with monstrpony that, had her COD in fact been something that could have benefitted the riding community in a constructive way, the family probably would have chosen to make it public so that some good may come from it.

[SwampYankee]

If anyone is being a troll here it's you. There's nothing wrong with wanting to know how a person you admired passed away. The causes of deaths of all sorts of people are published in school books for heaven's sake. There's nothing morbid or nosy about it. You're making this into some sort of big deal that it was never intended to be.

Despite not being an eventer I too have wondered what happened to her. Depending on what happened there could be something to learn from it.

Precisely.^ When someone is an elite athlete, performing at the pinnacle of their sport very much in the public eye, and was also a few years back the subject of no small controversy, it is perfectly normal and natural for the general public including other participants in that sport to want to understand what happened and why. This is no different than if the person were a nationally-known baseball, football or basketball player. The OP asked in a respectful way, what's your problem? When a person leads a public life, and that nowadays includes Facebook, they have to accept that what comes with it is that people may actually care!

As to people "dropping dead" without "cause" at age 42--very often the cause is medical error. This in fact happened to a woman I trailered to shows. The wrong cocktail of painkillers etc. and she went exactly the same way, died taking a nap on a friend's couch at age 54. You MD's would all LOVE it if no one ever looked into this stuff, but just left it as "s*it happens," wouldn't you? The truth is that medical errors, hospital infections, just plain mistakes kill more Americans every year than the Battle of Antietam.

It may very well be that no statement has been made because someone is investigating the possibility of litigation--they certainly did in my friend's case.

So yes, there may very WELL be some lessons to be learned here--about medications, repetitive concussions, possible depression, who knows? Pure speculation, but when you live in the public eye people are bound to ask these questions.

This is not "invasion of privacy." This is "news."

[trubandloki]

Somehow, I think if knowing the cause of Amy's death would benefit the eventing community in a constructive way, then we would know what it was and those close to her would honor her by making sure that knowledge would prevent harm to others, however possible. I think, given the fact that we do NOT know, that there's a good chance it is not something we need to know, and probably something that her family would rather not share, which is their right.

That is a very valid point. I had not thought of that.
I had been of the school of thought that what does it matter if we know, why get your panties all bunched that someone asked. It is so common to be told cause of death for people in the public eye why not this one, etc.

Monstrpony probably hit the nail on the head.

[JER]

It is interesting that for deltawave, myself and other healthcare professionals the release of any information regarding a patient's health history or medical care is absolutely verboten unless all the forms are signed in triplicate and the attorneys all nod their heads yes.. (HIPAA). But when we die, that all goes out the window. I don't think the OP meant any harm either, but it does seem like a personal matter for the family and not something that should be published in the newspaper like it is here.

That's why, as I explained earlier, there's usually a split in the 'publicness' of the autopsy report v. the investigative report. That's why, when a death is explained by conventional, non-violent means -- as in a death with a known medical cause that was evident in the days before the death -- the death does not become a ME/Coroner's case.

Investigations by public agencies should be a matter of public record unless there are credible, legal reasons for privacy. Oversight and openness go a long way towards ensuring a healthy society.