Words Cassidy Nunn
Photo Nunn Other Photography
Long time Victoria-based dressage rider, judge and volunteer Sheila Skene has been an integral part of the sport of dressage both here on the Island and nationally.
The sport of dressage, which can sometimes be described as “horse ballet,” is the art of riding and training a horse to perform a series of precise movements in the form of a “test” or “freestyle” at competitions. The sport has a long, rich history worldwide, and here on the Island over many years there have been several dressage clubs holding clinics and competitions to further the sport. Dressage tests are performed in front of a judge, who gives each movement a score for an overall total given in percentages.
This past April, Sheila was surprised to find out she’d been honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award from Equestrian Canada – Canada’s national governing body for equestrian sport. “I didn’t know until the bulletin came out!” she says with a look of genuine surprise. The award was “completely unexpected recognition from Equestrian Canada.” Whomever nominated her remains a mystery to this day, though with her long-standing and inspiring involvement in the dressage community over the years it comes as little surprise to those in the dressage world that she’d be the perfect candidate. “I am both honoured and humbled to be recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award for being part of the sport I have loved and enjoyed for much of my lifetime,” she says.
In 1964 Sheila emigrated to Canada from England in her early 20s with her family. She’d grown up riding and spent time in her early career working in stables and the equine industry before pursuing a career in the Personal Trust industry, which provided her with more secure support for her passion for horses and riding. It wasn’t until the late 1970s that she discovered the discipline of dressage and since then she’s participated and given back to the sport in a multitude of ways. As a rider, she competed and trained her own horses to the FEI level. She’s been involved in the local chapter of the national dressage club Cadora Inc., from administration to long-term director; was a member of the Equestrian Canada Dressage Committee as well as the Equestrian Canada Rules Committee; and has helped to organize many clinics, competitions and fundraising efforts over the years.
In 1989, Sheila decided she’d take the steps to become an accredited Equestrian Canada dressage judge. At the time there were “not many judges here and the ones we had, had been grandfathered in based on their known experience at the time. It was they who provided early training at that point.” She spent many years working her way up the judging levels from basic to medium, to becoming a licensed Senior Dressage and Para Dressage judge in 2015 which she held until 2024 when she made the difficult decision to retire from judging. “When you judge, you want to do the best you can, not for yourself, but for the horse and rider in front of you.” Due to physical constraints, judging was becoming too difficult, and athough she’s no longer sitting in the judges’ booth, she continues to remain active in the sport with her tireless volunteer work. “I’m in the background, doing the work few others like to do!” she says with a laugh. “I just like to be a resource. I’m happy to help when needed.”
Sheila feels strongly that volunteering is vital to the success of any sport. “All sports thrive because of the willing volunteers who support them,” she says. “You’ll learn and enjoy the journey more than you can imagine.”
