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US Equestrian Announces Amendments to Qualifications for Junior Hunter National Championships and USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm

by US Equestrian Communications Department | Apr 24, 2020, 2:30 PM

Lexington, Ky. - US Equestrian (USEF) has been closely monitoring the COVID-19 virus outbreak and the inevitable impact this pandemic will have on qualifications for our national championships and finals. We know it has been a challenging time for everyone, and we appreciate the way our hunter/jumper community has come together.

The following amendments to qualifications for the 2020 USEF Junior Hunter National Championships and 2020 USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm are effective immediately. If you are interested in competing at these events, whether currently qualified or not, you must enter by the closing date of entries to be eligible.

Additionally, please note that US Equestrian is actively reviewing policies and qualification requirements for the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final and Neue Schule/USEF Junior Jumper National Championships, scheduled to take place at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show from October 8-11, 2020. We will communicate any updates or changes for this competition to the membership as they become available.

USEF Junior Hunter National Championships
East Coast: July 6-8, 2020, Brandywine Horse Shows (Devon, Pa.)
West Coast: July 17-19, 2020, Sonoma Horse Park (Petaluma, Calif.)

Entry Deadlines:

  • East Coast
    • Entries close July 22, 2020, for the East Coast championship. All entries must be received prior to the deadline per the policies listed in the prize list.
    • A maximum of 290 horses will be accepted to compete, however, USEF reserves the right to adjust this number to ensure fair and consistent point qualification standards and a safe competition environment.
       
  • West Coast
    • Entries close June 23, 2020, for the West Coast championship. All entries must be received prior to the deadline per the policies listed in the prize list.
    • A maximum of 200 horses will be accepted to compete, however, USEF reserves the right to adjust this number to ensure fair and consistent point qualification standards and a safe competition environment.
       
  • Horses entered by the closing date of entries, but not accepted to compete by one of the qualification methods will be placed on a waitlist. Late entries will be placed on the waitlist in the order they are received.

Junior Hunter 3’3” Qualifications:

Entries for the USEF Junior Hunter National Championships in the 3’3” section will be accepted based on the following:

  • Spaces will first be filled with horses that qualified by winning a championship or reserve championship in an “A”-, “AA"-, “B"-, or “C”-rated Junior Hunter 3’3” section between June 1, 2019, and May 31, 2020, OR being in the top 10 on each of the USHJA Junior Hunter 3’3” Zone standings for competitions with a start date of December 1, 2019, through May 31, 2020.
     
  • Horses that are champions in their respective sections at the previous year’s USEF Junior Hunter National Championships may return without qualifying.
     
  • If there are still open spaces, additional horses not otherwise qualified may be eligible to compete in the national championship based on National Horse of the Year (HOTY) points in their respective sections. These horses shall be accepted based on the National HOTY points earned by horses in their top-15 competitions starting on or after June 1, 2019, through competitions starting on or before May 31, 2020. Points from both the younger and older Junior Hunter 3’3” sections shall be counted.

Please submit any questions about the USEF Junior Hunter National Championships to [email protected].

Junior Hunter 3’6” Qualifications:

Entries for the USEF Junior Hunter National Championships in the 3’6” section will be accepted based on the following:

  • Spaces will first be filled with horses that qualified by winning a championship or reserve championship in an “A”-, “AA"-, “B"-, or “C”-rated Junior Hunter 3’6” section between June 1, 2019, and May 31, 2020, OR being in the top 10 on each of the USHJA Junior Hunter 3’6” Zone standings for competitions with a start date of December 1, 2019, through May 31, 2020.
  • Horses that are champions in their respective sections at the previous year’s USEF Junior Hunter National Championships may return in 2020 without qualifying.
     
  • If there are still open spaces, additional horses not otherwise qualified may be eligible to compete in the national championship based on National Horse of the Year (HOTY) points in their respective sections. These horses shall be accepted based on the National HOTY points earned by horses in their top-15 competitions starting on or after June 1, 2019, through competitions starting on or before May 31, 2020. Points from both the younger and older Junior Hunter 3’6” sections shall be counted.

Please submit any questions about the USEF Junior Hunter National Championships to [email protected].

USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm
August 3-9, 2020, Kentucky Horse Park (Lexington, Ky.)

Entry Deadline:

  • Entries close July 21, 2020, for the USEF Pony Jumper National Championships, the Marshall & Sterling/USEF Pony Medal Final, and the Regular Hunter Pony and Green Hunter Pony sections. All entries must be received prior to the deadline per the policies listed in the prize list.
     
  • A maximum of 670 hunter entries and 200 Medal entries will be accepted to compete, however, USEF reserves the right to adjust this number to ensure fair and consistent point qualification standards and a safe competition environment.
     
  • Horses entered by the closing date of entries, but not accepted to compete by one of the qualification methods will be placed on a waitlist. Late entries will be placed on the waitlist in the order they are received.

Regular Hunter Pony:

Entries will be accepted based on the following:

  • Spaces will first be filled with ponies that qualified by winning a championship or reserve championship in an “A”- or “AA”-rated Regular Hunter Pony section between July 2, 2019, and July 1, 2020.
     
  • Regular ponies that are champions in their respective sections at the previous year’s Pony Finals may return in 2020 without qualifying.
     
  • If there are still open spaces, additional ponies not otherwise qualified may be eligible to compete in the championship based on National Horse of the Year (HOTY) points in their respective sections. These ponies shall be accepted based on the National HOTY points earned by ponies in their top-15 competitions starting on or after July 2, 2019, through competitions starting on or before July 1, 2020. Only points earned in the respective Hunter Pony section will count towards qualifying.

Please submit any questions about the Regular Hunter Pony National Championships to [email protected].

Green Hunter Pony:

Entries will be accepted based on the following:

  • Spaces will first be filled with ponies that qualified by winning a championship or reserve championship in an “A”- or “AA”-rated Green or Regular Hunter Pony section between December 1, 2019, and July 1, 2020.
     
  • If there are still open spaces, additional ponies not otherwise qualified may be eligible to compete in the championship based on the National Horse of the Year (HOTY) points in their respective sections. These ponies shall be accepted based on the National HOTY points earned by ponies in their top-15 competitions starting on or after December 1, 2020, through competitions starting on or before July 1, 2020. Only points earned in the respective Green Hunter Pony section will count towards qualifying.

Please submit any questions about the Green Hunter Pony National Championships to [email protected].

Marshall & Sterling/USEF Pony Medal Final:

The number of points required to compete in the Marshall & Sterling/USEF Pony Medal Final has been reduced by half to 15. Any rider who has currently earned or will earn 15 points during the qualifying period of July 2, 2019, through July 1, 2020, will be considered qualified.

Please submit any questions about the Marshall & Sterling/USEF Pony Medal Final to [email protected].

USEF Pony Jumper National Championships:

US Equestrian has approved the following amendments to the selection procedures for the 2020 USEF Pony Jumper National Championships. Please see below for the summary of modifications:

  • Application Deadline and Qualifying Period - extended to July 1, 2020
  • Certificate of Capability requirement - removed for 2020
  • All athlete/pony combinations who complete the online application and meet the Minimum Eligibility Requirements outlined in Section I of the selection procedures will be invited to compete in the Championships

Please find the complete amended version of the USEF Pony Jumper National Championship Selection Procedures here.

If you have any questions regarding the USEF Pony Jumper National Championships, please reach out to Erin Keating, Director of Jumping Development Programs, at [email protected].

Additional COVID-19 Resources

We encourage you to review the information available on the USEF Coronavirus Disease Resources page for up-to-date information and resources from USEF, our recognized affiliates, the CDC, and more.