“Horses”
Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing at all against horses, they’re much better than cats.
For me, an athlete is a person, period. Horses have no free will when it comes to sports, and whips or spurs are often needed to “persuade” a horse to do what is required.
But don’t forget bulls in rodeo-style (not Hispanic style) bullfighting, where the idea for the cowboy is to rassle the bull to the ground bare handed, and the idea for the bull is to throw and stomp the cowboy. Each contestant agrees on what his goal is.
The most that a crop or spurs can do is act as a reminder. I know, I had the slowest Thoroughbred on record, and I always wore Prince of Wales (blunt) spurs and carried a jumping bat. But they were simply to put her up in the bit and remind her that a big fence was coming, not to beat her or cut her sides bloody (not that you could with blunt spurs - they're about the diameter of your thumb and rounded on the ends). If she hadn't wanted to hunt or run three-day, there is no way she would have. And she kept on wanting to even after arthritis put an end to her career at age 27 -- jumping fallen logs in the pasture and galloping for fun.
And believe me, riding seriously requires that you be in excellent physical condition and have good balance, body awareness, flexibility, and strength. And that's quite apart from the specific skills needed to guide and control a horse.
I could convince you of this in less than thirty minutes on my mare at the end of a longe line.