HORSE SHOW

A 'horse show' is a judged exhibition of horses and ponies. Many different horse breeds and equestrian disciplines hold competitions worldwide, from local to the international levels. Most horse shows run from one to three days, sometimes longer for major, all-breed events or national and international championships in a given discipline or breed. Most shows consist of a series of different performances, called ''classes,'' wherein a group of horses with similar training or characteristics compete against one another for awards and, often, prize money.

Contents

International organizations and competitions

Horse shows within various nations

Structure

Awards

See also

External links

Horse show sanctioning organizations

Pony Club national organizations

Major national and international level all breed horse shows

International organizations and competitions

There are ten international disciplines run under rules established by the ''Fédération équestre internationale'' (FEI):

★ Combined driving

★ Dressage

★ Endurance riding

★ Eventing

★ Horseball

★ Paraequestrianism (Paralympic equestrian sport for athletes with disabilities)

★ Reining

★ Show jumping

★ Tent pegging

★ Vaulting
The rules of the FEI govern competitions open to riders from all nations, including the Olympic games and the World Equestrian Games.
At the other end of the competition spectrum, Pony Club is an international movement that teaches young people riding skills suitable for eventing and other English riding competition. To help develop positive experience and good sportsmanship, Pony Clubs also sponsor horse shows open only to young people under the age of 18 and their horses. Various nations also have their own programs for developing young equestrians, such as the 4-H program in the United States.

Horse shows within various nations

The United States Equestrian Federation is the American national body for equestrian sport. It also organizes and sponsors horse shows for many horse breeds who wish to utilize the drug testing, judge certification and standardize rulemaking process of the USEF. In addition, it sanctions events in disciplines and lower-level competitive areas that are not internationally recognized, such as show hunter and equitation. Other US organizations such as the National Cutting Horse Association [1] organize competitions for specific disciplines, such as Cutting, and some breed organizations such as the American Quarter Horse Association sanction their own breed-specific shows.
Horse shows in the United States take several forms: Some are restricted to a particular breed, others are "open" or "all-breed" horse shows, which offer both classes open to all breeds as well as breed-specific classes for many different breeds. In the last few decades, American "open" horse shows have tended to become specialized by discipline into hunter-jumper or "sport horse" shows, dressage shows, and shows featuring Western riding events. However, there are still some multi-day, all-breed events that feature multiple breeds and disciplines, such as the American Royal in Kansas City, Missouri and the National Western Stock Show in Denver, Colorado.
In the United Kingdom, horse shows include many different classes for different horses and ponies. For example, there are classes for traditional breeds found in the British isles. There are also classes which compare different horse abilities at jumping and their manners when ridden. Affiliated societies, such as Ponies UK and the British Show Pony Society have large shows each year. These events last several days and include many different classes.
Horse shows in Australia are governed by the Equestrian Federation of Australia.

Structure

There are a range of competitive equestrian events available and specific offerings range widely by nation and even by region within a given country. However, in North America, most horse shows provide the following range of classes:
The English riding classes fall into two primary styles, hunt seat and saddle seat. "Hunt type" or sport horse classes include dressage, show jumping and show hunters, Eventing (also called horse trials), and English pleasure or Hunter Under Saddle, also known as a "flat" class, where the event is judged on presentation, manners and rideablity of the horse). "Saddle seat" or "Saddle type" classes are all on the flat and are mostly variations on English Pleasure, though the high action "Park" style classes differ because they emphasize brilliant trotting action. Equitation classes judge the form and ability of the rider.
Show jumping, eventing and dressage are sometimes called "Olympic" events, because they are the equestrian sports included in the Olympic Games.
Western or Stock horse competition includes working cattle events, such as cutting, team penning and working cow horse in the USA, and campdrafting in Australia. They also include "dry" classes (without cattle) that include western pleasure, reining and equitation.
There are also specialized classes for draft horse showing, and a number of events for horses and ponies driven in harness, including Fine Harness classes for Saddle Seat-type horses, Roadster classes that use equipment similar to that of harness racing, and the FEI-sanctioned sport of combined driving. Miniature horses also have their own shows, with a number of specialized classes.
Most horse shows offer Halter classes, also called "breeding," "conformation," or "In-hand" classes. In these classes the horse is led without a saddle, not ridden, and its conformation and gaits are judged. To train young equestrians in halter showing techniques, horse showmanship classes (also called Showmanship in hand or youth showmanship), are offered. They are the halter equivalent of equitation, in that the handler, not the horse, is judged on his or her abilities.
Classes may be broken down by the age of horse or rider, by the number of first place ribbons earned by horse or rider, and by size or breed of horse (or pony). In addition, there is a near-infinite range of regional or specialty classes that may be offered. Various types of costume classes are frequently offered; sidesaddle classes are common; a "leadline" or "walk-trot" division may be offered for small children or very inexperienced riders; and assorted "freestyle" classes, where a horse and rider perform a routine set to music, are also popular.
Rodeos and horse pulling competitions are not technically horse shows, but they are competitive equestrian events, often with a great deal of prize money. Equestrian vaulting is not usually seen at ordinary horse shows, even though it is an FEI-recognized equestrian sport. Games, such as Gymkhana or O-Mok-See competition are usually held separately from ordinary horse shows, though a few of these "speed" events may be thrown in as "fun classes," particularly at 4-H, Pony Club, and other small shows.

Awards

'Prize money' is sometimes awarded, particularly at larger competitions. The sum varies by the placing of the rider, the prestige of the show, and the difficulty of the class. Horse Shows do not offer cash purses as large as those the thoroughbred racing industry, though a few of the biggest show jumping, cutting and reining competitions may offer purse money into the low five figures. However, most show horses in the United States, especially those at the amateur levels, rarely win significant cash prizes during their show career. At best, a solid competitor might break even on entry fees and, if they are quite lucky, cover some travel expenses. Most money made from showing horses is indirectly earned by breeding fees paid for top horses, the sale of their offspring, or from the training fees paid to top trainers.
'Trophies' are usually awarded to the first place horse in a class, depending on the size of the show. In a championship event, trophies may be awarded to both the champion and the reserve champion, and at a national or international show, trophies are sometimes given to the top five to ten competitors.
'Medals' are given at international events such as the World Equestrian Games and the Olympics. Usually only three medals, Gold, Silver, and Bronze, are awarded to the top three individuals or teams.
'Ribbons' are often given for the top placings in a class. Often ribbons are given through the top six place entries, although some of the larger shows may award ribbons to the top ten. Ribbon color varies from country to country, as shown in the following chart:

Prize Ribbon Colors

	Australia	Canada	Czech Republic	The Netherlands	New Zealand	Norway	United Kingdom	United States	Olympics (medals)
1st	blue	red	yellow	orange	red	red, blue, white	red	blue	gold	1st
2nd	red	blue	white	red	blue	red	blue	red	silver	2nd
3rd	white	white	red	white	yellow	blue	yellow	yellow	bronze	3rd
4th	green	yellow	blue	blue	green	green	green	white	blue	4th
5th	yellow	green	green	green	pink	yellow	pink	pink	red	5th
6th	brown	pink	violet	pink	purple		purple	green	green	6th
7th		purple	any other color					purple	orange	7th
8th		brown						brown	violet	8th
9th		orange						gray		9th
10th		light blue						light blue		10th
Champion	blue, red, white	red, blue, white		red, white, blue				blue, red, and yellow or solid purple		Champion
Reserve Champion		blue, white, yellow						red, yellow, and white or solid lavender		Reserve Champion

Champion & Reserve Champion ribbons are commonly called ''Tri-colors''. They are usually a combination of the 1st, 2nd, & 3rd place colors (2nd, 3rd, & 4th for Reserve Champion).

See also

★ Equestrianism

★ Equitation

★ Show (animal)

★ Agricultural show

★ Show hunter

★ Show jumping

★ Horse showmanship

★ Halter (horse show)

★ Western pleasure

★ English pleasure

★ Hunt seat

★ Saddle seat

★ Western riding

★ English riding

★ Equestrian at the Summer Olympics

★ International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI)

★ United States Equestrian Federation (USEF)

★ Equestrian Federation of Australia

★ Ringmaster (horse show)

★ Horse show steward

External links

Horse show sanctioning organizations

★ Federation Equestre International (FEI)

★ United States Equestrian Federation

★ Equestrian Federation of Australia

Pony Club national organizations

★ Pony Club United Kingdom

★ Pony Club United States

★ Pony Club Canada

★ Pony Club Ireland

Major national and international level all breed horse shows

★ Washington International Horse Show, Washington D.C.

★ National Horse Show, New York City, USA

★ Dublin Horse Show, Ireland

★ Horse of the Year Show, UK