Obituary A tribute to former BD chairman Penny Pollard

Penny Pollard

FORMER BRITISH DRESSAGE CHAIRMAN, PENNY POLLARD PASSED AWAY ON MONDAY 31 JANUARY 2022, AT THE AGE OF 63, FOLLOWING A LONG AND BRAVE BATTLE WITH CANCER. P enny dedicated ten years to British Dressage as a Board level volunteer, until forced to stand down from her position as Chairman in 2018 due to her ongoing illness.

Her outstanding business and commercial acumen was coupled with a positivity and infectious enthusiasm that inspired not only the Board, staff and volunteers of B , but also everyone who had the good fortune to meet her. She was kind, thoughtful and generous with her time, always looking to support both the personal and professional development of members of the BD team during her tenure.

Penny was passionate about the sport of dressage and, as an established international business consultant, was also passionate about helping individuals, teams and organisations to maximise their potential. These two interests were big drivers in her life that she combined perfectly during the ten years she served in British Dressage. er significant contribution through the BD Marketing Committee resulted in developing and enhancing the BD magazine, the evolution and launch of a new website, as well as introducing the free Associate Membership, which attracted 32,000 new followers to British Dressage after the success enjoyed by the sport in London 2012.

Changing the perception of dressage, to ensure it was seen as more inclusive and accessible to all, was always at the top end of Penny’s ‘to do’ list. This was evidenced by the successful launch of Team Quest in 2013 and the introduction of a new Club membership tier for grass roots riders the following year.

After six years at the helm of the BD Marketing Committee, Penny was elected BD Chairman in 2013, succeeding the outgoing Chair, Jennie Loriston-Clarke. Her energy and vision were the driving force behind the modernisation of the sport, professionalising our policies and processes, as well as overseeing the move to BD’s new headquarters at Meriden.

Penny instigated the culture change that shaped the future direction of British Dressage and helped to make it the progressive and financially secure organisation that it is today.

Along with former Finance Director Maggie Copus, Penny was also instrumental in securing charitable status for British Dressage, with the training and education of members at its core. This not only provided effi ciencies and savings, but also helped B to build fi nancial reserves that would enable greater investment back into the sport.

The change also facilitated the setting up of a separate trading company, allowing more opportunity and e ibility to work with commercial sponsors, partners and suppliers to generate additional income to fund new initiatives.

Starting riding at the ABOVE: PENNY, PICTURED WITH CARL HESTER, WAS PASSIONATE ABOUT THE SPORT OF DRESSAGE. age of ten at the Fulmer INSET: PENNY WAS THRILLED TO DON HER TAILS TO COMPETE HER OWN HOLME GROVE BERNINI School of Equitation near AT PSG LEVEL. Gerrards Cross, Penny didn’t venture into horse ownership until some years later, when she and her husband, Keith Humphrey, were living and working in Dublin. Her mentor at the time was Joan Keogh, who played a major role in putting dressage on the map in Ireland, and also in igniting a passion for dressage in Penny.

When the couple returned from Ireland, Penny contacted Peter Storr and moved her two horses, Corky and Buccaneer, to Pebbly ill, eter’s fordshire base.

She later bought Holme Grove Bernini by olme rove rokofi ev as a foal and, when he was two, moved him to Peter’s new yard at Peasemore in Gloucestershire. He was competed by Lucy Cartwright at Small Tour; Penny also competed him herself and was thrilled to don her tails to compete at PSG level. oyal oncert oyal iamond ontinue was then purchased with Hermione Black for Peter Storr to ride as a youngster and they enjoyed success in his early years before ‘Rico’ was then taken on by aria Eilberg. lthough e tremely sensitive, Penny always had faith in the beautiful grey and it gave her such pride when he and aria completed their fi rst rand ri in . hey went on to score a number of wins and podium placings at the level and Penny then gifted Maria her share in the horse.

Outside of BD, Penny was recognised as an eminent Organisation Development Consultant, nationally and internationally, having led and designed signifi cant transformational change initiatives over years. Prior to this, she held commercial and managerial roles in the Financial Services and IT sectors. Penny worked with Price Waterhouse oopers globally on a range of projects and was central to developing and delivering the fi rm’s client relationship strategy, as well as one of the lead facilitators for PWC’s key talent programme. In , enny founded management consultancy ore onte t onsulting with her husband Keith. Under this umbrella, she proudly sponsored the British Dressage oung rofessionals ward from onwards. Penny loved this opportunity to share her business skills to provide advice and support for young equestrians, as well as funding generous bursaries to help those starting out achieve their business goals. Penny’s memory will live on with the Penny Pollard bursary award that continues to be presented in her honour each year as part of BD’s Young Professionals Programme. B hief E ecutive ason Brautigam paid tribute; “This is devastating news for us all, especially so soon after losing Linda Whetstone. The dressage community has lost two leading lights, who both made an

The change also facilitated the setting up of a separate trading company, allowing more opportunity Gerrards Cross, Penny didn’t venture into horse ownership until an eminent Organisation Development immeasurable contribution to the sport as Chairs of BD. “Penny was instrumental in bringing me into the sport and it was her infectious enthusiasm, drive and vision that made British Dressage what it is today. She leaves a great legacy, both professionally and personally, as someone who always gave so generously and sel essly to others. o one who saw her loudly cheering on Team GB at championships or passionately leading the medal celebrations could be in any doubt how much she loved the sport. “Penny had her own unique style and always a great sense of fun. She was one of those people who would brighten any room with her positivity and eff ervescent personality. Penny tackled adversity with the same optimistic outlook and courageous spirit that she lived her life, with an inspirational determination and positive energy that we could all learn from. We are all very grateful to have had Penny in our lives, but also thankful that she is now fi nally at peace.” The British Dressage Board and all the staff at British ressage off er their sincerest condolences to Penny’s husband, Keith. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of her friends and family. Tributes to both Penny Pollard and Linda hetstone will be paid at the ive tar Winter Championships.