The Road to Summer Games Now Stops in Devon

Even though it doesn't open until Memorial Day weekend there is some big mid-winter news from the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair. 

Big Announcement about a big role for Devon on the road to the 2012 Summer Olympic Games:

For the first time since 1996, Devon will be part of the qualifying process for the United States Show Jumping team that will compete at the 2012 London Olympics.

Devon can expect to see some of the top horse/rider combinations from the selection trials that will take place in Wellington, FL in March.   The competition in Wellington will result in the "long list" of combinations. Those Olympic hopefuls will then compete at two out of four observation events.  

Other observation events will be held in Del Mar, CA in early May, Lexington, KY in mid-May and Calgary in Canada the second week of June.  

The two classes that will be observation events at Devon are the $100,000 Grand Prix of Devon, Thursday, May 31 and the $50,000 Open Jumper Stake, which will feature something not often seen at Devon, a water jump.

The Idle Dice Open Jumper Stake will take place late in the afternoon, Saturday, June 2.   "We are delighted to have the opportunity to host an observation event. The show will benefit greatly, but so will the spectators and competitors," said Devon Horse Show and Country Fair Chairman, Leonard King.  "The spectators will see many of the top riders and horses in the world vying for a spot on the Olympic team.  

The competitors will be able to enter an arena filled to capacity with a very large and vocal crowd.  This is a great help to any rider/horse combination hoping to one day enter an Olympic stadium with the largest, loudest crowd they've ever encountered."