Dr. Mary Flannery:

Yes. We should not forget that responsibility lies with the rider, who must prove he or she is capable and qualified to compete in such a competition. This is also very important in three-day eventing involving cross-country riding in which, unfortunately, there have been many fatalities over recent years. These were not due to concussion but rotational falls, when a horse hits a fence, its back end goes up in the air and the horse rolls over and falls down causing a traumatic crush. Unfortunately, these are very serious and have been fatal.