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THE TEAM EMMA TOMLINSON MA VetMB MRCVS
Company Director  Emma studied at Magdalene College at the University of Cambridge receiving a BA honours 1993-1996 and a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine 1996-1999.
The majority of Emma's veterinary career has been spent in equine practice, currently working for Buffy Shirley-Bevan, one of the UK's foremost equine vets, specialising in top class racehorses, and all other types of sports horses. Emma also covers the most of the veterinary work at the Beaufort Polo Club as well as running Beaufort Embryo Transfer. Emma spends some of the winter in Argentina vetting horses for European buyers.
It was whilst working in Argentina that Emma met Fernando Riera who is recognised as being the top embryo transfer vet in the world. She appreciated how well the process worked under his auspices and was immediately inspired to try this method of breeding back in the UK, with his expert advice and guidence. Up to this point vets had not been too successful in the UK as they lacked the necessary experience and did not have acces to the level of recipient herd that is required. Emma immediately recognised that embryo transfer was a fabulous way of breeding from active sports horses without having to interfere with their competitive programme, at the same time allowing important bloodlines to continue at the very highest level.
Emma invited Fernando to help pioneer the first commercial embryo transfer breeding programme of its kind in the UK. Having started with polo ponies the business now encompasses most sports categories.
Emma insists that for the future Beaufort Embryo Transfer will focus on continual improvement on increasing the quality of sports horse breeds and expanding the progression of frozen embryo usage for later dates, thus enabling higher rates of transfers abroad.
Emma is one of England's top lady Polo players having represented the England team and being a qualified Polo coach. She has also Event ridden to Intermediate standard and ridden as an Amateur Jockey in Point to Points and National Hunt.
CLAIRE TOMLINSON
Company Secretary 
Claire Tomlinson went to Oxford University in 1963, studying agricultural economics at Somerville College. She soon earned a squash blue and was short-listed for the Olympic fencing team. Claire captained the Oxford Polo team beating Cambridge 7-0 in 1966 earning herself a half blue!
Claire became the only woman in the world to rise to five goals, spending more time on a horse than many professional players. She is more than simply the most influential lady player the world has ever known with her unswerving determination, exceptional understanding of the horse and sheer love of the game she has become a pioneering, world class coach, a champion for the young. In 1993 with Hugh Dawnay she instigated and set up a coaching system for the H.P.A. from scratch, which has had a profound effect on how players are taught. She is admired for her ability to instruct across the spectrum, working with leading professionals as effectively as novices. She is one of six official H.P.A. team coaches, and regularly coaches British squads at F.I.P. championships as well as holding sessions for the H.P.A. Junior Development Squad at Down Farm.
Claire is the biggest breeder of polo ponies in Britain, having started in the 1970s and is pro-active with the modern breeding programme presently in operation, which includes Beaufort Embryo Transfer. Her father had always bred polo ponies, putting a small Thoroughbred stallion to his best mares. Down Farm has always had a Thoroughbred stallion, previously Man of Harlech by Welsh Pageant and now Mister Superb by Superlative as well as standing two Argentine stallions, Chess and Hector, who came from Héctor Barrantes and are respectively by Top Secret and Sequito, dozens of whose progeny play in the Argentine Open. Claire's sons, Luke and Mark both play polo for England and their top ponies are home-bred out of Claire's best playing mares.
DR FERNANDO RIERA
Technical Director 
Fernando Riera is recognised as the top embryo transfer vet in the world, having graduated from The University of Argentina in Buenos Aires. He then worked in the Resident Reproduction Studies Section, New Bolton Centre, University of Pennsylvania USA for four years. Fernando is currently Technical Director at his own embryo transfer centre, Stud Dona Pilar, Lincoln, Argentina and here at Beaufort Embryo Transfer, Westonbirt, Glos, UK. REBECCA COX
Embryo Transfer Technician 
Rebecca Cox graduated from Hartpury College, University of the West of England, in 2002 with a BSc (Hons) in Equine Science. During this time she developed a keen interest in equine breeding programmes and has since been able to turn this interest into a career. She gained a lot of experience on a thoroughbred stud before joining Beaufort Embryo Transfer in 2002.
In 2006, Rebecca successfully completed a DEFRA approved A.I. course and is a practising A.I. Technician at the centre. Rebecca's wealth of knowledge in this area has been further enhanced by her time spent at Doña Pilar, Argentina working closely with Fernando Riera within the field of Equine Embryology. She has devoted the UK winter months to working in Argentina for the past few years and is an integral part of the Beaufort Embryo Transfer team. She oversees most aspects of the day-to-day running of the centre and is constantly ensuring that clients are kept in the picture about their animals.
Dr MARCELO CAMPOS
Embryo Transfer Veterinarian
Marcelo Campos graduated from the University of Tandil, Argentina in 1997. He worked as the resident veterinarian in 4 different Thoroughbred studs (Horizonte, El Padrino, Panamericano and Los Prados) in Argentina between 1998 and 2005. In 2005 he started working at Doña Pilar and for the last 3 years has successfully combined both the Argentina and UK stud seasons at Doña Pilar and Beaufort Embryo Transfer. He maintains the high success rates that Fernando Riera introduced and is a great asset to our thriving centre.
EUGENIO MENDIBURU
Embryo Transfer Technician 
STEPHANIE GENT MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon 
EMMA CARR
Office Administrator
Emma joined the team in December 2007 after spending all of her professional life trying to decide between a career in the equestrian industry or in business and office management. Her role at Beaufort Embryo Transfer allows her to indulge in both of these interests. After obtaining Business and Finance qualifications she went on to spend 2 years at Kent Law School, University of Kent at Canterbury. In 1998 she then went on to manage an International Show Jumping yard and in 2002 graduated from Hartpury College, University of the West of England with a BSc (Hons) in Animal Science. She then managed her own business in Equine Injury Rehabilitation based in Bristol until her own injury meant her career needed to follow a more office based route for the time being. She spent the following two years as an office manager for another company before accepting this position at Beaufort Embryo Transfer.
Her role with us is co-ordinate the efficient running of the office with responsibility for managing all of the company's administration needs from the booking in of mares to handling the client accounts.
NAHUEL SAPSONNE
Recipient Herd Manager & Stallion Handler
Nahuel comes from General Lamadrid, Argentina and has been part of the Beaufort Embryo Transfer team for 6 years. In Argentina he helps on his father's farm as well as regularly participating in the Argentine Rodeo Shows. His role at Beaufort Embryo Transfer is to manage our recipient herd, which has increased from around 30 mares to 160 over the past 6 seasons, and ensure they are in perfect condition to nurture embryos. He also manages the grazing of all the horses at the centre, which is a thankless but vitally important task, as well as handling the stallions.
JUAN JOSE SOLA
Stud Groom & Veterinary Assistant 
JOSEFIN JANZON
Stud Groom & Veterinary Assistant
OLIVIA GIBSON
Stud Groom & Veterinary Assistant 
NICHOLAS WOOD
PR & Press Officer 
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