Inquest into the Death of Jessica Lesley JACKSON

Contributing factors

• aggressive weight-cutting by acute water loss over final week
• water-loading technique followed by dehydration
• intensive training in heat while wearing sweat suit
• complete fluid restriction on day of weigh-in
• cessation of sweating indicating imminent heatstroke
• lack of medical supervision during weight-cutting preparation
• lack of knowledge about dangers of weight-cutting
• pressure to meet weight commitment to avoid perceived disrespect
• absence of intervention despite visible warning signs
• inadequate food and fluid intake during final days
• unrealistic weight target set (9 kg loss from 72.7 kg to 63.5 kg in 2 months)
• female-specific physiological challenges with water-loading not adequately understood

Coroner's recommendations

1. The Honourable Minister for Sport and Recreation should consider amending the Combat Sports Act 1987 (WA) and Combat Sports Regulations 2004 (WA) to empower the Combat Sports Commission to undertake a greater role in regulating trainers and gyms responsible for training combat sports contestants outside of contests, to improve safety in combat sports in Western Australia. Any additional resources required should be funded by the State Government.
2. The Combat Sports Commission should consider implementing a scheme requiring contestants to provide their weight at the time of registration (at least 7 days before the contest) in addition to the existing system of formal weigh-in on the day prior and the day of the contest. Commission staff can use this information to determine early whether a contest is safe to sanction. This would likely require legislative amendment to the regulations.