Amarillo to host revamped NCHA World Championship Finals in 2004 - 2006 

 

(Fort Worth, TX) – The National Cutting Horse Association is returning to Amarillo, Texas, in a big way. The NCHA Executive Committee has chosen Amarillo to host their expanded World Championship Finals event in January of 2004, 2005, and 2006.

 

Amarillo was selected based on the city’s commitment to working with the NCHA to produce a “world class” cutting horse event under the new, expanded format for the prestigious event.

 

This is a major development for Amarillo’s growing equine event industry. Already, the city hosts three major equine championships in November; the US Team Penning Association National Finals, the World Championship Ranch Rodeo and the National Finals Steer Roping.

 

“This is a show our membership has told us they want. It will be a great way to bring together so many cutting horse enthusiasts to celebrate this fine activity. And we are delighted to return to Amarillo,” Jeff Hooper, Executive Director of the NCHA, says.

 

The NCHA World Championship Finals will be held in the Amarillo National Center at the Tri-State Fairgrounds. The 2004 reformatted event will grow out of the NCHA’s existing World Championship Finals held each February during the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

 

The NCHA anticipates 550 horses competing in this new event, with competition in 11 classes. The top 50 money earners in each class will be invited to compete for a share of a total purse exceeding $500,000. World Champions will be crowned in each of the 11 classes.

 

Thousands of cutting horse enthusiasts are expected to compete and visit the show, and each will spend about 4 to 5 nights in Amarillo.

 

The show dates for 2004 will be January 12 – 22.

 

Amarillo is a hub of both cutting horse and Quarter Horse interest and therefore is a logical choice to host this new event, according to Hooper. Nearly 2,000 NCHA members live within 6 hours of Amarillo and over 100,000 American Quarter Horse Association members live in Texas and the surrounding states of Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico and Oklahoma. Over 96% of all horses competing in NCHA events are registered American Quarter Horses.

 

For more information on the NCHA, the sport of cutting, and the expansion of the World Finals in 2004, please call the NCHA at 817-244-6188 or visit www.nchacutting.com.