Renowned Dressage Judge, Stephen Clarke, was awarded the British Equestrian Federation (BEF) Medal of Honour this weekend at the British Dressage National Championships, Stoneleigh, Warwickshire.
Involved with horses for all of his life, Stephen was an active Pony Club member and competed in the disciplines of Show Jumping and Eventing before following a career in Dressage in 1979. He still holds the record for more national championship Prix St George wins that any other British dressage rider.
On the national scene, Stephen was Chairman of the Dressage Group Judges Committee for nearly ten years, during which he was instrumental in modernising the system to encourage more and better judges. In addition to holding the position of Director of Judges for British Dressage Stephen invests much of his time in the sport as an Official International Dressage Judge, he was recently President of the Jury at the World Cup in s'Hertogenbosch.
John Tulloch, President of the BEF said, "Stephen has worked for the good of the sport of Dressage. His contribution on a national level has undoubtedly lead to the popularity the sport enjoys today and I am delighted that the BEF Board has decided to award the BEF Medal of Honour to a very worthy recipient."
Source: British Equestrian Federation
Image by Dirk Caremans