Lexington, Ky – Mar. 2, 2023 – The National Horse Show is proud to announce the creation of our new Area Championship classes for both the Hamel Foundation National Horse Show 3’3” Equitation Championship and the THIS National Horse Show Adult Equitation Championship classes. These championship events will be available for horse shows to host, one in each of our existing ten Maclay Regions.
Our hope is that these events will allow our members that participate in these classes throughout the year, and perhaps also in the corresponding Finals, the opportunity to not only gain valuable experience utilizing a new higher level competitive opportunity in their own home areas, but also to give these same riders a great opportunity to prepare for their Finals to be held at the prestigious National Horse Show at the Kentucky Horse Park in November.
These Area Championship classes will be run using the same format as our own Maclay Regional Finals. Open to any riders, these classes are designed to give our members an opportunity to gain experience and to compete on a larger scale against other riders from their same geographical area. The Champion, Reserve Champion, and Third place finisher from each Area Championship, if not otherwise qualified, will receive invitations to compete in the Hamel Foundation NHS 3’3” Equitation Finals or the THIS Adult Equitation Finals. Riders that are qualified for both the Hamel Foundation National Horse Show 3’3” Equitation Championship and the Maclay Regionals (and/or the Maclay Finals) may enter and compete in both the Hamel Foundation NHS 3’3” Area Championship and the ASPCA Maclay Regionals.
Horse show management groups that are interested in hosting one or both of these Area Championships should apply directly to the NHS by contacting Cindy Bozan at cindy@nhs.org. All horse show management groups are encouraged to apply, but preference will be given to horse shows and management groups that are hosting our current ASPCA Maclay Regional Championships.