couTop Equestrian Canada officials held an emergency meeting on Jan. 31 after dealing with board resignations and letters from riders and committee members expressing discontent with the organization and calling for the resignation of Jorge Bernhard, EC’s president, and CEO Eva Havaris. Now, a grassroots group has formed to launch serious opposition.
“It really took off in January after Torchy Millar announced that he would resign,” said Veronica Low, an amateur eventer in Toronto who started the closed Facebook group Enough EC. “It started as a safe place where members could vent their frustrations and throw some ideas around, have an open forum and discuss where we could find solutions.
“I think this is part of the frustration with the new governance at EC that there is no way to do that,” Low continued. “If you complain they don’t get back to you.”
As of Feb. 17, Enough EC has 1,299 members in its Facebook group, including Canadian Olympic team eventers Jessica Phoenix and Kyle Carter. Low said the group holds many of the same concerns that have been expressed in the two open letters sent to the board from the eventing and jumping committees before the emergency meeting.
The high performance jumper riders sent a second letter to the board after the emergency meeting affirming their continued concerns with the organization, and that letter was personally signed by Canada’s top jumper riders such as Ian Millar, Eric Lamaze, Tiffany Foster and Yann Candele.
“We are writing to pledge our whole-hearted support for the Jump Canada committee, and to make it known that we, as high performance athletes, echo the concerns raised in its public letter of January 27, 2017, regarding the state of our national sport federation under the current leadership of its CEO and Board of Directors,” stated the letter.
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“There are some really big concerns about accountability and transparency,” Low said. “It’s breeders, it’s riders, it’s competitors, it’s amateurs, it’s everyone. And we’re collectively saying enough, we’re done.”
What started as an exchange of ideas became a call to action as more board members resigned and more riders began speaking out against Equestrian Canada. Low set up a Go Fund Me page to raise money for the legal costs of taking on Equestrian Canada. As of Feb. 17, the Go Fund Me page had raised $2,545 of its $10,000 goal.
“We have two lawyers working right now, and the goal of Enough EC is to force the resignation of [Bernhard and Havaris],” said Low. “We want them out; it’s that simple. And the only way to do it is with good guidance, which is where we are right now.”
Equestrian Canada released a statement regarding Enough EC through communications and media relations manager Jessie Christie.
“The Board encourages engagement through honest, open and respectful communication, utilizing the mechanisms currently in place to address concerns in a professional manner. EC does not wish to comment on other approaches and channels which may not accurately reflect the facts,” read the statement.
“EC’s Board and staff share the community’s recognition and concern that our industry is facing serious challenges—from barriers to entry to declining participation,” it continued. “It is our view that we must engage in meaningful and respectful dialogue with our community so that we may find resolutions together.”