Former Bega carriage driver Boyd Exell was named the International athlete of the year, his four-horse team also claimed the International Horse of the year award, while Clint Beresford was named the Domestic athlete of the Year for his efforts in the showjumping arena. 

Exell is a multiple-time World Driving Championship winner and holds a number of records in the sport. 

He was also inducted into the Equestrian Australia Hall of Fame in recognition of his remarkable individual achievements in carriage driving.

“All I can say is wow what an honor to be inducted into Equestrian Australia’s Hall of Fame,” Exell said. 

“It is one of the highlights of my career. I received an OAM a few years ago and that was also very high up there for me but this something really special.”

Exell said he felt deeply honoured to be named among the ranks of athletes like Andrew Hoy, Wayne Roycroft and Ted Dwyer.

Now based out of the Netherlands, Exell’s brother Kent attended the award ceremony in Brisbane to accept the trophy on his brother’s behalf. 

Meanwhile, Beresford claimed an outright win in the Australian stakes of the World Cup series riding Emmaville Jitterbug. 

It was a shaky start to the final round at Victoria’s Boneo Classic, but Beresford finished strong to seal the result. 

“It has been an incredible journey with this horse,” Beresford said after winning the World Cup leg. 

“To say I’m happy is an understatement.”

Beresford was named the top rider competing in the country, but he was also honoured by Equestrian NSW, where he was named their top rider with Emmaville Jitterbug also named the Horse of the Year. 

A family friend said Beresford was also honoured by Equestrian NSW, named their best rider, while Emmaville Jitterbug was declared the best horse for the year. 

Beresford said Emmaville was continuing to improve at each event and he was looking forward to more challenges this year.