2003 Dressage Canada Board Elected - Message from Current Chair

Source :  Dressage Canada

We are nearing the completion of the first year of an elected, accountable Board of Directors for Dressage in Canada. In many ways this year has served as a landmark of self governance, a benchmark for our sport and organization in Canada. An essential requirement by Equine Canada and Sport Canada of our self governance is the creation of a Strategic Plan to guide us for the next many years. Our plan, accepted recently by Sport Canada with an excellent review, is our sport’s blueprint for the next ten years. This plan defines our Vision, Mission and our three Foundation Objectives, which we hold to be essential to the entire plan.

All ensuing Functional Committee Objectives, related Strategies and Tactical executions must support and further one or more of the Core Objectives, which are:
- Develop a broad-based educated Dressage community
- Create the means for Canadian International teams to achieve medal performances
- Achieve the financial stability to realize the core direction

This plan will be a public document available through the DC web site. This is an important decision. Our community deserves to know where we are going, in plain language. We need to know what is required of our Committees and what will be required of the dressage community at large interested in participating to achieve our goals. Committees will be asked to craft and be accountable for operational initiatives that will further our sport’s strategic plan. Those interested in participating and joining Committees will now have a clear understanding of how we can all assist, a mutual responsibility. The CEF governance change to Equine Canada gives Canadian Dressage an opportunity to grow in ways unavailable to us previously. We must take advantage of this to succeed nationally and internationally, hard work but exciting times for our sport over the next several years. Our collective involvement, directly or through fundraising will result in our goals being met.

Results are now available concerning the recent Dressage Canada elections. The three available Board positions were filled by acclimation. Returning are current Directors, John Harris and Anne Welch . New to the Board for 2003 / 2004, we welcome Alastair Buchanan. Libby McMullen continues in the second year of her term as a Board member plus a CIDRA representative, currently Vickie Winter.

You should already have read in Horse Life the requirement of approved helmets for Juniors in 2003. To re-iterate, this rule is endorsed by Dressage Canada and will apply to Canadian Dressage shows in 2003 regardless of the level ridden by a Junior. Please note, FEI Dressage rules apply at FEI Dressage Competitions.

Great news concerning Pan Am Games. Dressage Canada’s request to the Canadian Olympic Committee [COC] to allow us to send a Dressage Team to the Dominican Republic has been approved. The Dressage Canada website has the Team Selection Criteria.

We are also committed to sending a Team to the Open Europeans at Hickstead next August. This is our opportunity to qualify for Athens. Three Team spots for Athens 2004 are still open and the COC has agreed we will be allowed to select a Team for Athens if we meet the FEI requirements through our Hickstead performance. Watch the DC web site for criteria.

John Harris
On behalf of Dressage Canada