Massive Change with Equestrian Canada Jumping Committee

Equestrian Canada (EC) would like to recognize three outgoing EC Jumping Committee members for almost four decades of combined years of service: Terrance Millar of Mono, ON, Mark Samuel of Mississauga, ON, and Beth Underhill of Schomberg, ON.

Terrance Millar of Mono, ON. Photo by Cealy Tetley

Millar stepped down from the EC Jumping Committee in November 2018 after 14 years of dedicated participation. He was the Chair of the High Performance Committee for Jump Canada (JC) from 2004 to 2016, and also served on the EC Board of Directors. In addition to representing Canada at the Olympics twice as an athlete (1968 Mexico City Olympics; 1972 Munich Olympics), Millar also acted as the Canadian Show Jumping Chef d’Équipe for several major games (1998 Rome FEI World Equestrian Games (WEG); 2000 Sydney Olympics; 2008 Beijing Olympics) and as the Team Leader of the Canadian Equestrian Team for the 2016 Rio Olympics. This extensive resume in high performance sport made Millar an indispensable member of the EC Jumping Committee whose guidance was sought after and relied upon by all.

A similarly respected voice is Underhill, who sat on the JC Board from 2004 to 2006, and the EC Jumping Committee since 2014. During that time, she served on multiple committees including the JC High Performance Committee and Jumping Selection Committee, where she helped choose the athletes representing Canada at the highest levels of international show jumping. Additionally, Underhill used her own wealth of experience as a veteran of many major games (1991 Havana Pan American Games; 1992 Barcelona Olympics; 1994 The Hauge WEG; 1999 Winnipeg Pan Ams) to support her fellow athletes as the Grand Prix Riders Representative to the EC Jumping Committee for several years.

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Beth Underhill of Schomberg, ON, with the silver medal-winning Children’s Canadian Show Jumping Team at the 2017 North American Youth Championship. L to R: Underhill, Anya Bereznicki, Carly Stevens, Kyara Semrau, Kieley McQuaker. Photo by Cealy Tetley

Underhill also shared her knowledge with the next generation through her role as Youth Development Program Advisor for the EC Jumping Talent ID program since its inception in 2015. During her time in this position, she generated remarkable results by focusing on talent identification, support and mentorship of up-and-coming Canadian jumping athletes at the FEI Children’s, Junior and Young Rider levels.

Millar and Underhill’s years of service would not have been possible without Samuel, who co-founded Jump Canada in 2004. A former Canadian Show Jumping Team member himself (2002 Jerez WEG; 2003 Santo Domingo Pan Ams), Samuel applied the knowledge and insight he gained as a high performance athlete to immeasurably benefit the Canadian jumping community nationwide. He has remained a key presence on the JC Board and EC Jumping Committee for the past 15 years, and spearheaded many key initiatives during his long history of involvement with EC, including the Jump Canada Hall of Fame and JC Bursary. Samuel’s generous dedication of both his equestrian and business expertise helped support EC programs and initiatives for jumping athletes nationwide.

Mark Samuel of Mississauga, ON. Photo by FEI/Richard Juilliart

In addition, Samuel shoulders great responsibility at the international level. He is the Second Vice President of the FEI, as well as Chair of FEI Group IV, which directs the development of equestrian sport for 10 countries. Furthermore, Samuel is Chair of the Working Group on FEI Officials, which was set in 2016 to provide analysis and discussion on a range of issues pertaining to officials, from educational opportunities to the withdrawal of the age limit.

“As Chair of the EC Jumping Committee, I have, for many years, relied upon the expertise and advice of these three outstanding individuals,” said Pam Law. “Torchy, Beth and Mark brought so much experience to our Committee, and were invaluable to us with their excellent advice and guidance that has helped further the sport of show jumping going forward. I wish them the very best in their future endeavors. The Jumping Committee will be forever in their debt for their outstanding contributions.”

EC extends its heartfelt gratitude to Millar, Samuel and Underhill for their years of hard work and effort advancing the state of show jumping in Canada.