In memoriam: Joan Gold

It is with great sadness that BD has learned this week of the passing of Joan Gold, a doyenne of British Dressage, who has died at the age of 107. 

Her funeral will be on Wednesday 2 October at St James, Marston Meysey SN6 6LQ. Those wishing to attend the funeral are kindly asked to contact Sophie Bennett via email. This is a change from the previous date of 26 September.

Joan Gold became famous for her clean sweep of the dressage classes at the 1958 Aachen International – the Grand Prix and four further classes.  20 Years before at the age of 21, at this same show she had won two more minor classes, one for foreigners and another for ladies.   

Having benefitted from dressage training when at a finishing school in Munich, spending two years in Sweden, and her husband being posted to West Berlin she was equipped to pass on a knowledge of the Continental training that won the prizes in International Dressage. This she duly did. Many of the riders who helped bring Britain from the dressage doldrums towards the great successes of this century speak of how they are indebted to her.  These include Carl Hester, Jennie Loriston-Clarke and above all David Hunt who said: “Joan gave me the opportunity of a lifetime allowing me to compete her top Grand Prix horse Roman Holiday”.    

It was not just the riders as Joan became a leading international judge and her credits included adjudicating at a European Championship.  She passed on her knowledge and spread widely her encouragement to potential and qualified judges.  One of her important benefactors of this approach was Andrew Gardner for whom she gave valuable monitoring.  

Apart from this, Joan was a Chef d’Equipe to a British team and a long term member of the BHS Dressage Committee.  Her knowledge, experience, and inspiring manner was not restricted to adults and she used her energies to help the young.  This included being a Commissioner to the Garth Pony Club where Princess Anne spent her early equestrian years.