Distraught mother who saw her daughter, 17, fall during cross-country riding trial was the first person on the scene - only to discover her girl had been crushed to death beneath her horse
- A mother of a teenager killed in horse riding accident was first on the scene
- Caitlyn Fischer died from head injuries when horse jumped and landed on her
- Mother Ailsa Carr immediately knew her daughter had died, inquest has heard
- Olivia Inglis, 17, died weeks earlier when her horse rolled on top of her
- An inquest into deaths of the two young equestrian riders began on Monday
The mother of a teenager killed in horror riding accident ran onto a cross country course to discover her daughter had been crushed to death by her horse.
Caitlyn Fischer, 19, died from a blunt force head injury when her horse erred before a jump, fell and landed on her at the Sydney International Horse Trials in April 2016.
Her mother Ailsa Carr was the first on the scene and immediately knew her daughter had died, an inquest which began on Monday has heard.
Ms Fischer's death came weeks after Olivia Inglis, 17, was killed when her horse fell at a jump and rolled on top of her while she was competing in the NSW Hunter region on March 6, 2016.
The teenagers' deaths are the focus of a two-week inquest at the NSW Coroners Court in Lidcombe, Sydney's western suburbs.
The mother of teenager Caitlyn Fischer (pictured), who was killed in horror riding accident, ran onto a cross country course to discover her daughter had been crushed to death by her horse
Ms Fischer (pictured) died when her horse hit a fence at the second jump on the course. She had earlier discussed the jump with her coach
Deputy state coroner Derek Lee is examining the circumstances surrounding the tragic deaths.
Counsel assisting the coroner, Peggy Dwyer, said Ms Fischer's mother, who is a registered nurse, saw her daughter and horse Ralphie fall as they attempted the second jump of the cross-country phase.
The horse is understood to have fallen after becoming distracted and missing his stride.
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'She was the first to reach her daughter and when she got there she found that Caitlyn was motionless,' Dr Dwyer said.
'In short, Ailsa was able to tell immediately that Caitlyn had passed away.'
Ailsa told Ms Fischer's coach, Christine Bates, 'there was nothing they could do, that Caitlyn was already gone'.
Emergency services (pictured) at the scene of Caitlyn Fischer's death at the Sydney International Horse Trials
Police and emergency services (pictured) at the Sydney International Horse Trials, where Ms Fischer died in April, 2016
Ms Bates said she was shocked when she ran to the scene because 'it never crossed my mind that she might be deceased'.
She said her pupil told her before the fatal accident that Ralph felt 'a bit strong' in their warm-up but the coach wasn't concerned and was pretty confident he'd settle on the course.
The duo had discussed making sure the horse was watching the fence and wasn't distracted upon approach.
During her opening address on Monday, Dr Dwyer said the beautiful, 'clever and vibrant' teenagers were both competing at extremely challenging levels.
She said they had spent many years working their way up to qualify with their respective horses.
Olivia Inglis (pictured) died when her horse rolled on top of her during a competition on March 6, 2016
The mother of Ms Inglis had expressed concerns about two of the jumps on the cross country course where she died
The inquest heard how Ms Inglis's mother had expressed concerns about the jumps involved in their accidents.
The 17-year-old spoke to her mother Charlotte about two jumps included in the cross country event in the Scone horse trials at 'Broomfield' in Grundy on March 6, 2016.
The two jumps – combination jumps known as 8A and 8B – were downhill and one of them included a jump between two hills.
Counsel Assisting the Coroner Dr Peggy Dwyer told the court that it was at jump 8B that the accident occurred, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Ms Inglis' horse Coriolanus, a 16-hand gelding, fell after misjudging the fence.
Charlotte and Arthur Inglis pictured with their daughter Olivia, 17, who died in March 2016. Ms Inglis had discussed her concerns with her mother about some of the jumps on the cross country course where she died
'At jump B it is expected your Honour will hear that Coriolanus missed his stride … causing him to have a rotational fall and fell on Olivia,' Dr Dwyer said.
When a paramedic arrived at the scene they observed that Olivia was unconscious but breathing.
But Ms Inglis died of crush injuries to her chest before a helicopter medical team could fly her to hospital.
Ms Fischer had also expressed concerns about some of the jumps on the cross country course.
During a walk of the course, Ms Fischer had discussed the first two jumps of the course with her coach.
Equestrian Ms Inglis (pictured) shown jumping in a poster which was displayed outside her funeral
'They talked about how she should ride to fence one and fence two because he may be fresh and spooky,' Dr Dwyer said.
When she began the course, Ms Fischer took the first jump well, but as she approached the second jump, Ralphie hit the fence.
The hit caused him to have a rotational fall, and left Ms Fischer with catastrophic head injuries.
Dr Dwyer said the inquest would be examining the type of fence included in the jump where Ms Fischer died.
She also said that at the time of the two deaths a system was in place for riders to express concerns about jumps to a body called the Riders' Representatives.
In the days following the death of Ms Inglis (pictured) thousands of equestrians around the world paid tribute to the young rider by sharing pictures of themselves and their horses using the hashtag #RideForOlivia.
No formal complaints were made to it by either rider, but Dr Dwyer said that 'does not mean that there were no actual concerns'.
Ms Inglis' family is one of the most highly-regarded dynasties in Australia's horse breeding and racing industries.
Their company, William Inglis & Son, was established in 1867.
In the days following Ms Inglis' death, thousands of equestrians around the world paid tribute to the young rider by sharing pictures of themselves and their horses using the hashtag #RideForOlivia, which tragically included a Facebook post from Ms Fischer.
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