About Us
President The Duchess of Cornwall
Duchess of Cornwall (Getty Images©)
The Duchess has a wide range of interests which include the performing arts, gardening and riding. The Duchess is a keen and experienced horsewoman and has bred several horses herself. She currently keeps two horses at the Highgrove Estate. The horses take part in showjumping, showing, general riding and cross-country trialling.
For more information please visit The Duchess of Cornwall.
Patron David Hunt
David is the trainers’ representative on the FEI Dressage Committee, is a member of the BD board and is President of the International Dressage Trainers Club in addition to being one of the most sought after trainers in the world.
A top international rider himself, he was short listed for the Olympics on three different horses and was the first GB rider to win an International Grand Prix.
Vastly experienced, he has trained many horses to Grand Prix and teaches many clients both in the UK and all over the world.
Trustee Henrietta Cheetham
A qualified Chartered Surveyor, Henrietta ran a successful property development company before moving to the Cotswolds and raising a family.
Henrietta has competed at all levels from Novice to Grand Prix and the majority of her horses have been produced by herself from youngsters.
Henrietta has competed for GB at Small Tour and is particularly successful in young horse classes, winning the International Young Horse Championship at Hickstead on Rocco V.
Trustee Iona Joseph
Iona and her late husband Stephen were both international art dealers specialising in 19th century English animal oil paintings. They exhibited regularly in London as well as in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
After the death of her husband five years ago Iona retired from business and now indulges her passion for tennis as a player and a spectator. Iona enjoys watching Henrietta compete and has a great love of horses and all animals.
Iona was delighted when Henrietta suggested they form a charitable trust in her late mother in law’s name to buy horses for para riders to help keep Great Britain the top nation in para dressage.
Advisor Michel Assouline
Fluent in French, German and English, Michel has become a highly respected trainer, teaching numerous riders of all levels across Europe up to Grand Prix at CDI International level. This includes three years as resident trainer to Suzanne Lebek, the former European Gold Medal Young Rider Team Champion, in Braubach, Germany.
Michel was voted ‘ 1995 UK Dressage Trainer of the Year, ‘ and is a member of the International Dressage Trainers Club. He is also currently on the British Dressage panel of trainers eligible to judge Potential International Dressage Horse classes and officiated several times at the Championships for four and five year old horses.
In 2005 Michel became UK Para-Equestrian Dressage Squad Coach and has so far taken his Team GB riders to win team gold medals at the 2005 European Championships, the 2007 World Championships, the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games and the 2009 European Championships. In March 2009 Michel was awarded the PDTT Coaches Award.
Advisor Jane Goldsmith
GBR Para Team Coach 1998-2004, FEI Para Dressage 5* judge, FEI Para Coach and Fellow of the British Horse Society. Jane is one of only 15 para dressage Olympic judges worldwide and is the fourth Britain to achieve this status. The accolade is the highest level of judge classification available and the appointment helps to reinforce the dominance of GB in para equestrian dressage.
Despite only beginning her judging career in 2005 Goldsmith has risen to the top in a relatively short amount of time making her achievement all the more impressive. Along with her skills as a trainer and technical delegate she aims to use her qualifications to assist in the education of judges as well as to officiate. The promotion has implications beyond judging and Jane hopes to be able to feed information back in to the sport, helping GB to keep well informed and so uphold our status as the best Para dressage nation in the world.
Advisor Lee Pearson CBE
Lee has won 21 gold medals since starting para dressage competitions in 1998. He won three of those at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics, another three at the 2004 Athens Paralympics, repeated this triple gold tally again at the 2007 World Para Championships and again at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics.
He has set an equestrian world record by being unbeaten at three consecutive Paralympics.
In 2003, he became the only disabled person to have won a title at the British Dressage National Championships competing against able-bodied riders when he took the 2003 elementary restricted finals. In 2006 and 2007, Lee won the Grade I Disabled Dressage Rider Championship at the National Dressage campionships.
Lee was voted BBC Midlands Disabled Sports Person of the Year 2003 and 2004 as well as BBC Midlands Sports Personality of the Year 2004. He was warded an MBE in 2001 and an OBE in 2005 in recognition of his monumental equestrian success and services to sport for the disabled. Also in 2005, Lee was bestowed an honorary doctorate from Staffordshire University. Lee was awarded a CBE in the 2009 New Year Honours List for services to equestrianism and disabled sport.
Lee became the first chairman of the FEI (International Equestrian Federation) Athletes Committee in 2007.
In 2008, Lee continued to collect more trophies when he became the first recipient of the British Dressage Para-Equestrian Dressage Rider of the Year.