October is usually the first month for Australian finals, and this year was no different. We had the Australian Championships for Vaulting, Jumping and Dressage and also the RDAA Championships, plus for the first time, for Interschool competition. All championships went well by all reports, and congratulations to the new Australian Champions!
The Horseland EFA Australian Interschool Championships took place in Toowoomba and were hailed as a great success by those who attended or participated. Congratulations to all the 250 or so riders that took part and to their support teams, and a big thankyou to the organisers and their many helpers, the sponsors and also Queensland Events, who held over financial support earmarked for the event planned for 2007 and cancelled as a result of the Equine Influenza outbreak.
November will bring us the Melbourne Cup, where the three AUS-based members of our Silver medal Eventing Team plus Paralympic double-Bronze medallist Georgia Bruce will be involved in the Cup presentation. This is followed by the Australian International 3-Day Event in Adelaide, Equitana Asia Pacific in Melbourne and a number of FEI World Cup Qualifiers: Dressage at Equitana and Jumping at Shepparton, Wodonga, Equitana and Sale. Links with details can be found on our web www.equestrian.org.au.
Just to make sure, in case things go astray with this e-news in the busy month of November, I will mention the FEI-level events in December, also listed on our web: Lakes & Craters CCI/CIC in Camperdown (Vic.), the Dressage Festival at Werribee including the Final of the Pacific League FEI World Cup Dressage, and the ISS Summer Showjumping Classic at SIEC including the final rounds of the Australian League of the FEI World Cup Jumping.
More meetings ....
Apart from events involving horses, there will also be EFA National Board meetings in Adelaide in conjunction with the EFA Annual General Meeting, at which the Chairs of the Branches will be present. As "shareholders" under the current constitution, they are the only parties entitled to vote at AGMs. The plan had been to put to the vote a new constitution that would have replaced the current version, which contains some rather outdated wording and is based on a corporate model that can no longer be used for new company registrations.
A revised constitution with up-to-date wording reflecting the governance structure of the current constitution was sent to Branches for input and comment before the EFA Annual Forum in February 2008. Unfortunately, in spite of telephone conferences and meetings of a special constitutional committee set up to find acceptable solutions, there has been no agreement on a final version to be put to the vote at the forthcoming AGM. Instead, the Branches will be voting on a couple of amendments to the current constitution that will, if passed, lead to the removal of the Northern Territory Branch as a voting/shareholding entity. NT members, who number about 70, have long been underserviced because of the Branch's size and the amount of money available. Equestrian Queensland has already taken on the basic administration for members and horses registered in the NT and provide an expanding range of services to their members. The NT will retain its Branch identity and will still be able to send individuals and teams to events to represent the Territory and get local funding.
After the AGM, the National Board will have a "joint session" with the Branch Chairs to discuss the way towards a new constitution, review the Memorandum of Understanding that outlines National and Branch roles and responsibilities and other matters.
FEI General Assembly
On the Sunday following the AGM in Adelaide, I will be travelling to the FEI General Assembly in Buenos Aires. On this occasion, I will not be accompanied by the EFA President, as a new President will be elected after two new Directors take their place on the Board after the AGM in Adelaide. Mind you, when I went to five FEI General Assemblies during my SOCOG time (before taking up my current position) to present reports and to answer questions from the floor on the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, SOCOG did not send a chaperone to hold my hand.
At this year's Assembly, I will have the opportunity to make a 10-minute presentation during the Development Workshop, which is one of a number of "interactive workshops" during five days of meetings. My talk will be on special issues facing the sport in Australia and on how the FEI could help to address some of these. I chose the working title "FEI Euro-Centricity versus the Pillars 'National Federations' and 'Development' - How can we close the gap?" The 'pillars' refer to sections of the 'Manifesto' published by the FEI President HRH Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein. If you are interested in the detail, you can download a scan of the manifesto (1.2MB).
Branch Managers meet in Brisbane
The second EFA Management Conference for 2008 took place in Brisbane early October and had a rather wide-ranging agenda. Outsiders looking in at these conferences on the first day could get the impression that everything the Branches do is perfect but that the National Office does not do enough, does not get what it actually does right and does not consult with the Branches on all matters it deals with. But that is only a first impression in a '7 against 1' scenario where some argy-bargy can be expected. As a matter of fact, there is a free and often frank exchange of views and of useful information at these conferences and a lot of consultation takes place.
On this occasion, after subjects ranging from Sport Committee responsibilities to membership classifications to microchipping to database issues had been dealt with, I showed the group draft designs of a new EFA logo at the end of proceedings and got a very favourable response. Apart from liking the shape, we also settled on the colours to be used for the State and Territory variations. The plan is now to present the logo(s) at the EFA AGM in November and agree on a launch process early in the new year. This launch will include a revamped web site with hopefully additional functionality.
Adelaide
We are encouraging everyone to go and attend the Australian International Three-Day Event held 14 - 16 November, the only 4-Star event in the Southern Hemisphere. The EFA has given organisers strong financial support to get this year's show underway and retain a 4-star event in our region. The event has to be able to stand on its own feet. That requires strong commercial and government sponsorship. The television deal organised for 2008 will go a long way to make this happen. What is also required is strong support from interstate visitors taking up rooms in Adelaide for the event. Organisers have to be able to show that the event attracts visitors to Adelaide, not just the support crews of the participating riders. So please travel to Adelaide and enjoy a great event in the city's relaxed atmosphere!
National Eventing Safety Officer
The FEI requires National Federations to appoint a Safety Officer for the sport of Eventing, to monitor and audit safety programs, to report to the FEI and to carry out various other functions (for more details, please see FEI letter). The EFA has appointed Bob Powles to this position from a number of people, who had expressed an interest in the role.
Bob is a Commissioned Officer in the Victoria Police and has been involved in the sport in various capacities for a number of decades. We wish him well in his new important role and ask Branches and event organisers to offer Bob assistance as required to perform his duties as National Eventing Safety Officer.
Anti-Doping Policy
Because of changes in the World Anti-Doping Code (WADC), all international and national sporting organisations are required to update their policies and have the new provisions in place for 2009. We have revised our policy accordingly and received approval from the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Agency (ASADA) this week. All that remains to be done is to check our provisions against the FEI's policy once it is finalised and make modifications as appropriate.
One of the major changes in the new policy is the introduction of greater flexibility in the sanctioning provisions, particularly for first-time minor or "innocent" offences. Athletes that had sanctions imposed on them before the new policy takes effect (i.e. pre-2009) will be able to apply for a review to take advantage of the new provisions. There are also changes to the Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) provisions and in a number of other areas. We will be publishing a listing of changes once our policy and that of the FEI have been finalised.
On the topic of anti-doping, our Equine Anti-Doping & Medication Control rules are modelled on the FEI EADMC Rules. Prohibited substances are put into three categories: Doping, Medication A and Medication B. Persons Responsible for horses involved in "Medication" transgressions for the first time are offered an 'administrative sanction' that always involves disqualification from the event in question and the return of prize money and prizes but usually also carries a fine and a requirement to contribute towards the administrative costs of the case. The athlete has the option to accept the 'administrative sanction' or to request a tribunal hearing.
Review of Australian Sport and Future Funding
The Federal Government has set up an Independent Sport Panel headed by highly-regarded businessman David Crawford, to look into the Australian sporting system and how it can be improved to make it function more effectively and continue to deliver success at the international level. EFA Chairman Geoff Sinclair and I met with the panel this week and put across the EFA's views. High Performance Manager Brett Mace and I also attended an Australian Sports Commission (ASC) "Excellence in Sport" workshop in Melbourne earlier this month on the same subject.
The current global financial crisis is going to have an impact on sport and the budget allocations that may be available. The Federal Government needs to decide the overall funding of many Departments and faces tricky questions such as what is more appropriate: fund pensioners/build hospitals/fund schools and universities/buy defence equipment/etc. etc. or put more money into sport.
We hope, of course, that our Government funding will continue. We should point out again that 95 percent of the funding we receive has to be directed towards high performance activities in the Olympic sports and is not available at the "lower" levels. Also, the ASC does not fund events as such but the EFA High Performance Program can fund HP activities connected with events. Branches benefit in that State squad riders are often also able to participate in National HP clinics held in their respective States. If you would like to know more about how the EFA High Performance Program works, you should study the High Performance Handbook that is published on our web. It contains a lot of information that may correct some misunderstanding of how the program works.
I should mention that Geoff Sinclair and I met with Federal Agriculture Minister Tony Burke and Federal Sports Minister Kate Ellis in Canberra last week to present them with framed pictures of our Silver-medal-winning team in appreciation of the additional funding we received. Other matters were also discussed. You can read more by clicking on the news item listed below.
High Performance Positions & Applications
We are now calling for applications for National Coach, Selectors and Chef d’Equipe for 2009–12 in the Olympic Sports of Eventing, Jumping and Dressage. These are key positions within the High Performance Program. Applications close 17 November. Please check the EFA website for further information and detailed job descriptions.
Once the appointments for the above positions have been made and the new High Performance Panels are in place, the positions of Team Veterinarians, Youth Development Program Coordinators and Assistant Coaches will be advertised and then appointed by the respective High Performance Panel for each sport. Note: A detailed outline of the High Performance Program and the roles of the High Performance Panels is contained in the High Performance Handbook published on our web.
Beijing Olympic Games & High Performance Review
While the Australian Team enjoyed a successful Olympic campaign, there is always a need to review our operations and look for ways to improve and learn from what we did, so we can continue our climb up the world ladder as an Equestrian nation.
To assist the High Performance Program with this process, all Olympic Shadow Team Members along with Jumping and Dressage riders who participated in the Selection process in Europe, have been sent questionnaires to get their feedback on the process from ‘start to finish’. Following the submission of the questionnaires, the riders will then have the opportunity to meet with their respective High Performance Panel to discuss their campaign in greater detail.
Each High Performance Panel will meet over the coming months to review not only the Olympic campaign, but the program for the past four years since Athens and will then working towards implementing the new HP program for London 2012.
Equestrian Program nominated for awards
It is great to see Equestrian feature in the upcoming NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS) Annual Awards, which will be held on 27 November.
The NSWIS Equestrian Program, which is supported strongly with EFA/ASC high performance funding, has been nominated in two categories: Program of the Year and Regional Program of the Year. 'Well done' to Judy Fasher and her team for all their hard work and effort in having the Equestrian program recognised and nominated for these awards.
Beijing Olympic Silver medallist Shane Rose is a nominee in the category for the Male Outstanding Achievement Award. We wish Shane, Judy and the NSWIS Team all the best for these awards.
A complete list of nominees can be found on the NSWIS web.
Supporters and Sponsors
 I would like to thank our funding agencies, sponsors and supporters for their continued assistance. The Australian Sports Commission is our Principal Sponsor and we hope that High Performance funding and other grants will continue into the next funding cycle and beyond.
 Many thanks also to the Australian Olympic Committee, who apart from organising the Australian Delegation to go to the Games are also involved in securing more funding to guarantee Australia's medal success at future Games.
We are also looking forward to working with the Australian Paralympic Committee in the management of the Para-Equestrian high performance program from early 2009.
We hope our partnerships with our commercial sponsors can be strengthened further in the next Olympiad.
So in summary, we would like to mention
 
 
For more news and other information, please visit www.equestrian.org.au or your State Branch web (www.[state].equestrian.org.au).
Make it a good day!
Franz Venhaus
Chief Executive Officer
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