North American Youth Championships of Dressage & Jumping for 2020 Canceled
5 years ago StraightArrow Comments Off on North American Youth Championships of Dressage & Jumping for 2020 Canceled
LEXINGTON, Kentucky, May 6, 2020–The North American Youth Championships of dressage and jumping have been canceled, the three participating nations announced Wednesday, saying uncertainty over international travel and reduction of qualifying competitions due to coronavirus were the prime causes.
Canada, Mexico and the United States federations announced cancellation of the event that was previously named the North American Junior & Young Rider Championships scheduled to be held at Great Lakes Equestrian Festival in Traverse City, Michigan Aug. 4-9.
“The agreement to cancel the 2020 NAYC was made due to ongoing uncertainty surrounding international travel as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the significant reduction of qualifying opportunities for both dressage and jumping athletes in Canada, Mexico, and the United States,” the federations stated.
“The three national federations agreed that it is no longer feasible to host the championship this year, as horse and athlete combinations would not be able to properly prepare, qualify, or travel effectively for the event.”
“The Canadian, Mexican and U.S. federations are saddened to announce that we have reached the conclusion to cancel the 2020 NAYC,” said Bill Moroney, chief executive officer of US Equestrian.
“We understand the disappointment this will bring to young athletes across North America, as well as their parents, horse owners, and trainers. The Federations would like to thank the organizing committee of Great Lakes Equestrian Festival who have worked extremely hard to make the 2020 NAYC a memorable and special championship. We all look forward to heading to Traverse City for NAYC in 2021.”
Equine Canada High Performance Director James Hood said: “Although a tough decision, we need to make choices that protect the health and welfare of the athletes, staff and citizens of Canada while ensuring that we provide an appropriate window of time for riders and horses to prepare to compete. The existing situation in all three countries impacts training and competition access and will potentially limit our abilities to travel internationally. We applaud the work that our countries have done collaboratively on this project and thank the FEI, US Equestrian and the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival for their support.”
The US federation did not announce whether the lineup of national championships scheduled for 10 days later at Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, Illinois would still be held.
