British Dressage President and Vice President confirmed

With the President and Vice President roles at British Dressage due for renewal in 2026, British Dressage are delighted to confirm the appointment of both positions, as announced at this year’s Annual General Meeting. 

Following his initial four-year term, current BD President David Hunt has been re-appointed as President by the British Dressage Board of Directors for a second term, which took effect from the date of the 2026 AGM and will run until the AGM in 2030. 

Following the very sad loss of our Vice President Stephen Clarke in June this year, this position was unfortunately left vacant. Stephen was a remarkable man and a wonderful ambassador for British Dressage, leaving very difficult shoes to fill. However, the BD Board were unanimous in their recommendation to appoint Andrew Gardner to this role as Stephen’s successor.   

David Hunt 

David Hunt’s outstanding contribution to dressage touches all corners of the sport, as a rider, judge, and coach. He was the first British rider to win all three classes at an overseas international in Rotterdam in 1988 and trained four different horses long-listed for the Olympics, from Montreal in 1976 through to Atlanta in 1996. 

Chair of the Dressage Committee for five years between 1992 and 1997, when BD was still part of the British Horse Society, David also held the position of BD Training Director until 2015. He was instrumental in the development of our events for riders, judges, and coaches, including the National Convention, attracting some of the leading names in the dressage world to share their knowledge and expertise. 

David’s work as a trainer is particularly inspiring, having coached countless riders to national and international success, from grassroots to elite level. As President of the International Dressage Trainers Club, David has been at the forefront of the development of Great Britain’s growing reputation and presence on the world stage over the last four decades. 

David also helped to establish the FEI Judging Supervisory Panel, helping to promote best practice and maintain consistent high standards in judging at international championship level.  As Chair of the JSP, David’s exceptional knowledge of dressage principles and rules have been put into practice at the London, Rio, and Tokyo Olympics, as well as World Cup Finals, European Championships and World Championships. 

In recognition of the contribution David has made in the development of British Dressage, both at home and overseas, there is no better person to continue in the role of President. 

Andrew Gardner 

Andrew is a member of the FEI Judges Supervisory Panel, having been a panel member at the recent World Equestrian Games in Aachen, the Paris Olympic Games, World Cup Finals in Switzerland and the USA and the European Championships in Riesenbeck, Germany and Crozet in France. He is highly respected internationally as a 5* FEI judge. Andrew was awarded 5* judging status back in 2011 at a time when the only other British judge to have achieved this level was Stephen Clarke. 

In his role as a British Dressage List 1 and FEI 5* judge, Andrew has been a member of countless ground juries and officiated at international events across the world, including the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, as well as multiple FEI European Championships, World Championships, World Cup Finals and World Young Horse Championships. He has been a member of the BD Judges’ panel for over 40 years.  

He was also a member of the working group that led to the formation of British Dressage, as well as joining the Board as a Director between 2000 and 2006 where he served as Chairman of Judges for two terms. When dressage was a part of the British Horse Society, he was, for a period, Chairman of International Selection for seniors and U21s. He later went on to serve as International Judge Representative on the FEI Dressage Committee between 2017 and 2021. 

Outside of horses, Andrew is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and an Accredited Mediator.  He is Managing Director of Cooke & Arkwright, Wales’s largest independent firms of Chartered Surveyors founded over 125 years ago, specialising in commercial and rural property advice. 

Andrew’s contribution and commitment to the sport of dressage has been unwavering, he has been an outstanding official and great ambassador for British Dressage and therefore made the perfect choice to take on the role of Vice President. 

We would like to thank both David and Andrew for accepting this responsibility to represent British Dressage.