8 During the last 12 months the Officials and Coaching Pathways area at Equestrian Australia has seen a few staff changes; Alison Gestier - Coaching Pathways Manager, left in January, Whitney Chapple - Pathways Administrator, left in May and then Di Saunders - Officials Pathways Manager, left in June for pastures new. These changes, especially in the Coaching Pathway, have put the program into maintenance mode, led by Amy McGregor. The board, along with new CEO Lucy Warhurst, will now refocus in the coming months to address the challenges and bring a new lease of life to the Education Pathways. There needs to be a clear vision and identified roles and responsibilities, with an agreed roadmap for successful growth of officials and coaches in our sport. OFFICIALS FEI Courses In 2017/18 we had 1,487 registered Officials (a mixture of National and FEI Officials), which included 109 newly appointed Officials. An FEI Endurance Vet course was held in Brisbane in July with Dr Brian Sheahan as the Course Director, flying in just hours before the start of the course from an overseas appointment. The course offered a chance for promotion and maintenance of accreditations for those who attended. In October at Sydney International Equestrian Centre (SIEC), in NSW, an FEI Vaulting Judges and Stewards course was directed by Erich Breiter from Austria and Frank Spadinger respectively. The judges took part in five long days, the stewards three days, of intensive training and assessment which saw this group upgrading their FEI status. Held alongside the October Dressage Nationals at Boneo Park in VIC, was a successful FEI promotion and refresher course for Dressage Stewards. This course was conducted by Elisabeth Williams (USA), with EA’s Dressage Steward General Cathie Drury-Klein assisting. The course saw 10 new FEI promotions and 16 refreshing. It is great to see the ongoing commitment to this important aspect of Officiating. FEI Jumping Judges attended promotion and refresher courses in December at SIEC in NSW, directed by Stephen Ellenbruch (GER) and assisted by John Vallance for the Course Design component. In January, Boneo Equestrian Park, in VIC, hosted FEI Dressage Para Steward Courses alongside the CPEDI. Our Australian FEI Para Stewards and guest Para Steward from Sweden were guided by Course Director Alison King (HKG), with Veronica Steward (AUS) assisting. During April, two courses were run in Sydney for FEI Jumping Course Designers directed by Werner Deeg (GER), assisted by John Valance (AUS). The first course saw FEI Level 3 status gained by some who attended, the second course was for refreshing and it was great to see attendance from NZ and the opportunity to share the load of these FEI courses. OFFICIAL & Coaching PATHWAY