Five Minutes With... EA CEO - Grant Baldock

Grant Baldock, who joined the team at Equestrian Australia as their CEO in April 2010, has over fifteen years experience in sports administration. 

Since Grant joined Equestrian Australia it's obvious he's excited about equestrian athletes and events and he has plans to introduce several great new initiatives that will benefit EA members and events.

Grant's high energy and positive attitude towards all things equestrian can only be a great thing for the sport!

Horsezone caught up with Grant to find out more about this charismatic CEO...

Before starting your position as CEO of Equestrian Australia, what were you involved in?

I have been involved in various sport management roles for many years, primarily in aquatic sports such as swimming and Surf Life Saving.  Immediately prior to starting with Equestrian Australia, I was the General Manager for Sport with Surf Life Saving Australia and had the pleasure of working on events such as the Australian Surf Life Saving Champs, Kellogg’s Ironman Series and the Coolangatta Gold.

 

What drew you to the role at Equestrian Australia?

For me it was personally time for a change and EA provided a great opportunity to work in an Olympic sport that has a strong reputation in Australia.    

 

What’s impressed you so far and are there any similarities/differences between the athletes in your previous role and now?

Without a doubt it’s been the passion that exists within the sport.  From the elite through to grass-roots, there is a strong passion among all members and everyone genuinely wants to see the sport grow in the future.   There has been a strong foundation laid in the sport and it's put us in a great position to now take it to the next level.

It is surprising the many similarities between the previous sports I’ve worked with and equestrian.  Athletes, no matter what sport, all share common traits and that is passion for what they do, strong determination and drive as well as motivation to achieve excellence.  And our equestrian athletes certainly boast these traits!  I have enjoyed in the last 12 months getting to know our athletes and I’m looking forward to working closer with them in the future.  I believe equestrian athletes have a lot to offer our sporting community and society as a whole and one of our strategic priorities that we are focused on, is building the profile of our athletes in the public domain and ‘creating heroes’.

 

One of the recent introductions to the EA calendar is the Awards Celebration which is being held on 4 May at ANZ Stadium, Homebush. What does this night hold for attendees?

The night really will be a celebration of everything that is great about equestrian in Australia – it is set to be one big party!  This year we’re going all out for the gala event with live entertainment, Australian sports star and television personality Nicole Livingstone will be our MC on the night, not to mention the great venue we’ve selected.  2010 was another outstanding year for equestrian sport and on top of recognising those who have achieved excellence throughout the year, we’ll also be introducing the Equestrian Australia Hall of Fame.  Australia’s equestrian athletes, coaches and support teams are renowned right around the world and we thought it was time to recognise those throughout history who have helped make the sport what it is today.  This is one party you won’t want to miss – so be sure you get your tickets and come along!

 

Talk us through some of the other exciting new initiatives being rolled out by Equestrian Australia at the moment…

This is an exciting time for Equestrian Australia as the organisation is going through some real change that will help shape the direction for the future.  In October 2010 we launched our strategic priorities ‘Creating the future for equestrian sport’ which are the seven objectives that the whole of the organisation has bought into.  

Some of the things coming up include the launch of our new ICT platform which will revolutionise the way our sport operates.  While it’s still under construction and more details will be released in the very near future, I can reveal the purpose of this new online system we’re building is to make life easier for our members and administrators. The benefits will be felt right across the sport from our membership through to our events, through to how the public engages with equestrian sport.  

We’re gearing up to roll out a new national high performance pathways program, which is a collaborative approach to developing our current and future world class combinations, not only with our State partners, but also between our disciplines.

After submitting a joint proposal between EA and Pony Club Australia to the Australian Sports Commission, EA was successful in securing additional funding for a joint initiative that will look at ways the two bodies can work together to create seamless membership transfers. The initiative will provide a more identifiable pathway for junior riders moving from Pony Club into EA, providing coaches and officials with a clear pathway and much more.

 

It must be exciting with next year being an Olympic year – care to have a stab at which discipline you think will finish the best out of the Aussies?

As we are one sport of equestrian, I won’t single out any discipline but rather confirm to everyone that I believe we’re on track to achieve personal bests across all Olympic disciplines. 

 

Outside of your role at EA, what else are you involved in?

My two beautiful children keep me very busy.  My passion is Surf Life Saving and I enjoy competing where I can.  I also enjoy my running.

 

Thank you Grant for your time and we wish you every success with the Awards Night and all the wonderful new initiatives for our sport!