The Canadian dressage community lost a key member with the sudden passing of coach, trainer, mentor, and rider Neil Ishoy on Nov. 4th, at the age of 56.
Born in Weston, ON, Ishoy began his international competitive career as an eventer, representing Canada at the 1980 Alternate Olympics in Fontainebleu, France, and the 1982 World Championships in Luhmühlen, Germany.
After a 17-year hiatus from competition, he switched to his first love, dressage, with great success, sweeping the grand prix classes at Dressage at Devon in 2001 aboard the grey Oldenburg gelding Andiamo Tyme. That same autumn the pair won the Swarovski Canadian League Dressage World Cup at the Royal Horse Show, scoring 74.40% in the Grand Prix Freestyle and earning a berth at the 2002 World Cup Finals in ‘s Hertogenbosch, NED. Unfortunately, Ishoy was unable to attend because the horse was recovering from a knee injury.