Lexington, KY - John R. Long, Chief Executive Officer of the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and Frank V. Lloyd, Chairman of the Board of the USET Foundation announced today that Bonnie B. Jenkins, USEF Executive Director of High Performance will join the USET Foundation as Executive Director December 1, 2004.

Ms. Jenkins responsibilities will include oversight of the fundraising, communications, operational and financial administration of the Foundation. Ms. Jenkins will also work with John Long, to ensure a cohesive partnership with the USEF.

“This past year Bonnie has been instrumental in the transition of the USET and USEF into one unified national governing body. She is a true team player, and although I’m very sorry to lose her as our High Performance leader, I’m thrilled that her leadership skills will continue to benefit our sport in an important new way,” said Mr. Long. “I look forward to working with Bonnie for many years to come.”

“This is an exciting time for the USET Foundation. Bonnie will be a real asset to the Foundation since she brings a tremendous amount of knowledge and experience in equestrian sport from both the competitive and administrative sides. This will allow the Foundation to better support the high performance programs of the Federation by expanding our potential to raise funds,” said Frank V. Lloyd, Chairman of the USET Foundation. “This is a goal to which we are committed and we’re so pleased Bonnie will be directing our day-to-day efforts.”

Ms. Jenkins has been involved in equestrian sport for the past 30 years. As a junior rider, she was trained by George H. Morris and Hunterdon, Inc. showing the famous hunter, Gozzi to numerous national championships including the National Horse Show, Washington International Horse Show and the Devon Horse Show. After graduating from Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, Illinois in 1982, she joined the American Horse Shows Association in 1985 and served as its Executive Director from 1992 – 1995. She was Executive Director of the American Hunter Jumper Council from 1995-1999 and then Executive Director of the United States Equestrian Team from 2001 – 2003. Since the joining of the USET and USEF last year, Ms. Jenkins has served as Executive Director of High Performance.

“I am really looking forward to taking an active role with the USET Foundation and working with the Trustees to bring the development effort to a new level. It has been very rewarding serving as Executive Director of High Performance of the newly formed Federation and I am confident that the Federation led by CEO, John Long, has a bright future. I will continue to work closely with John in support of our athletes and our high performance programs. The timing is perfect for me, both personally and professionally, to use all my experience and contacts in equestrian sport to take on this new role with enthusiasm and determination”.

Ms. Jenkins lives in Oldwick, New Jersey with her husband Bill, and their two children, Blake 10 years old and Claire 8 years old.

James R. Wolf, currently Director of Eventing and Games Preparation for the USEF, will become Interim Executive Director of High Performance on December 1st. Mr. Wolf joined the USET in 1993 and has served as the Chef de Mission at international competitions including the Pan American Games, the World Equestrian Games and the Olympic Games.

ENDS
For more information, please contact Maria Partlow, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications on (859) 225-6941 or via email at [email protected]. USEF press releases are available on our web site – www.usef.org.