The Alberta harness racing community has lost one of its lifelong champions with the passing of Diann Clouston on Feb. 25, 2026, at the age of 78. Diann’s life was woven into the very fabric of Standardbred racing in Western Canada.
Diann was introduced to harness racing at an early age through her father Owen, a trainer-owner who raced throughout Western Canada starting in the mid-1960s. From those formative years in the barn and at the track, she developed a deep and abiding love for the Standardbred horse and the people who devote their lives to the sport.
She was the older sister of Rod Hennessy, one of the most accomplished driver-trainers in the history of harness racing in Western Canada.
In 1979, Diann and her husband Wayne Clouston claimed their first horse, Mutatis Mutandis, who went on to earn Alberta Claimer of the Year honours. Wayne had begun his career in the industry working for brother-in-law Rod, and together he and Diann built a life centered on racing — as owners, breeders and horsepeople committed to the sport’s growth.
As a breeder, Diann's Mutatis Mutandis became the dam of Viking Pirate, who was named Alberta’s Three-Year-Old Colt of the Year and Top Alberta-Bred. Alongside Wayne, they operated Sky West Farms, out of Okotoks Alta., where they stood multiple sires including Western Canada’s dominant sire Tyrant. Sky West Farms became Pacer Park in which they co-owned and operated as a racing center focussing on breaking and training yearlings for notable trainers such as Keith Clark, John Baxter and numerous others.
In the 1990s, Diann and Wayne, together with their youngest son Jason, operated a successful racing stable that campaigned stakes winners including Battle River Hawk, Flaming Princess and Pay The Fiddler.
Her influence extended well beyond the racetrack and breeding shed. Throughout much of the 1980s and early 1990s, Diann served as owner, editor and publisher of The Western Pace, a monthly newspaper devoted to covering harness racing across Western Canada. Diann ensured that horsepeople, horse achievements and industry milestones were documented and celebrated. Diann also dedicated several years of service as office manager for the Alberta Standardbred Horse Association (ASHA), further demonstrating her commitment to strengthening the industry from every angle — administrative, journalistic, breeding and ownership.
In recent years, Diann came full circle in the sport she loved through shared ownership of Preferred pacer Outlaw Game On, trained by her brother Rod Hennessy. It was a fitting chapter bringing her lifelong journey in harness racing beautifully back to its roots.
Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Diann Clouston.