By: Kenneth Kraus/Phelpssports.com

Lexington, Kentucky - May 17, 2011 - The 2011 Alltech National Horse Show has made the move to Lexington, Kentucky, and along with the glitz, the glamour, the prestige and the big money classes at this classic American tradition, the show will also feature one of the nation's longest running and most coveted national championships, the ASPCA(R) (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) Maclay National Championship.

The Alltech National Horse Show, 128th edition, will be staged at the Alltech Arena at the world-renowned Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky, site of last year's Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. The show runs from November 2 - 6, 2011, with the Maclay Finals taking center stage on the final Sunday.

Over the years the ASPCA Maclay Finals have been termed the "proving ground of champions" and the ultimate test for America's young riders. And in the case of this classic test of horsemanship skills, that's certainly more fact than hype.

"It's the culmination of a long year of competition, it's the final national championship, and with all of the history behind it, it's just a great event to be a part of," said top trainer Missy Clark, who, during the course of her stellar career as one of the nation's very best teachers, has sent nine different ASPCA Maclay National Champions to the ring. "If you look back at the names on the Maclay trophy, you see so many names of riders that have gone on to do great things in their careers. If you can get through the Maclay Finals, you can go on and do anything. If you win that class, you've got the goods; you've got the ingredients to do great things."

Valerie Angeli, senior director of equine and special projects development for the ASPCA, concurs with Clark's assessment. "Since its beginning in 1933, the ASPCA Maclay has been the most prestigious and coveted award for junior riders, and the ultimate test of horsemanship and partnership between horse and rider," she said.  "To ride in the Maclay is a huge accomplishment on its own, but - to win a Maclay class is truly exceptional, and to win or place in the championship finals elevates a young rider to celebrity rider status."

The ASPCA Maclay Horsemanship Trophy contains the names of some of America's great riders. Previous winners include United States Equestrian Team superstar William Steinkraus in 1941 and his teammate and long time Chef D'Equipe of the U.S. team, Frank Chapot in 1948. World Cup Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist Conrad Homfeld won the championship in 1967 and fellow Olympians Leslie Burr Howard (1972), Peter Wylde (1982) and Katharine Burdsall (1975) all got their start with a victory in the ASPCA Maclay Finals. The ASPCA's own Equine Welfare Ambassador, Brianne Goutal took home the coveted title during the 2005 show season.

Probably, the most impressive name of all on the trophy is that of the legendary George Morris who led the victory gallop at Madison Square Garden in 1952. Morris, the current Chef D' Equipe of the United States Equestrian Team and often called the founding father of horsemanship in America, said of the Maclay Finals, "It's an American heritage, a real tradition in our sport. The purpose of this wonderful discipline of equitation is to encourage good horsemanship. Horsemanship is caring for your horse, whether you have a pony or an Olympic jumper."

"It is important to remember that in this competition, just like in any other, true champions are not only the best at what they do, their hearts are in the right place and they truly care," agreed Angeli. "The ASPCA Maclay is, and always has been about, not just mastering the finest skills in hunt seat equitation; it is about compassion, consideration and responsibility to the horses.  Now more than ever we ask our ASPCA Maclay riders to put the welfare of their horses first and think about the many thousands of horses in this country who are not lucky enough to be properly loved and cared for," she noted. "After all, the ASPCA's history is about 145 years of protecting the horses who have served man so well throughout time."

And as Clark points out, the ASPCA Maclay Finals have always been an important stepping stone to future equestrian endeavors and success.

"It's a great developmental area for so many of our riders. If you use it as tool as you move forward in your career, to perfect your riding, to learn about proper position, proper function, that enables you to go on and do so many other things," Clark went on to say. "I think it's an important event in our American system, and if you look back in history at some of the winners, and even the great riders that maybe didn't win, but competed well, you see that verified time and time again."

This year, the finals have found a new venue at the gorgeous Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park. Clark is looking forward to this year's debut in Lexington. "It's quite a facility," she said. "And I know they keep improving it and dialing it up, so I am really looking forward to the National. I think it's going to be a very special event. I want to give credit to John Madden and the efforts they put forth at Syracuse, too. Now, as we move to Kentucky, I couldn't be more excited. The new sponsor, Alltech, has come forward in a big way. That's a great thing for the sport. And I know Mason Phelps is very on board and wants to make the ASPCA Maclay Finals a very special Sunday. I know they will succeed. I think it will be a very, very special event."

"The Alltech National Horse Show is going to make an all-out effort to make sure that Maclay Sunday is an extraordinary day," said Mason Phelps, the President of the National Horse Show Association of America. "In fact, that entire weekend is going to be one that equestrians will remember for a long time to come. We are pulling out all of the stops to make sure this event is superb at every level."

Regardless of the location, the ASPCA Maclay Finals are a very special event, and "Maclay Day" at the National has always been a pressure packed day of equestrian excellence. 

"Maclay day is simply intense," Clark affirmed. "You've prepared harder, and in a more concentrated manner than you have for any other championship. Just like when you're preparing for the Super Bowl, you train harder, right?" she asked. "You're pretty much up all night in preparation, and then competition day is a full day of just intense concentration, with plenty of highs and some lows too. With the Maclay, there's really nothing like it. It's a year's worth of work all boiled down to one intense day of competition."

This year's highly competitive event, pitting America's top juniors in a head to head battle for horsemanship supremacy, takes place on the final Sunday of the Alltech National Horse Show on November 6th.

This year's championship will be judged by Kip Rosenthal and Cynthia Hankins.

No matter the winner, that Sunday in November promises to be a very special day, as it has been every year since the inception in 1933.

Angeli summed it up beautifully. "I have a friend who is in her 80's and has lived an amazingly adventurous and rich life, having traveled all around the world and done just about everything," she said "But when asked, she will tell you that one of her proudest accomplishments was riding in the Maclay at Madison Square Garden and competing against Jacqueline Bouvier (Kennedy) in the 1940's. The Maclay program is framed on her piano as you walk in the door and it states that "the purpose of the ASPCA Maclay competition is to reward young riders, through a serious of tests, for excellence in horsemanship and thoughtfulness to their mounts."

ASPCA MACLAY CHAMPIONS OVER THE YEARS

1933 Audrey Hasler Chesney
1934 Elizabeth Hyland Molony
1935 Lillian M. Chambers Lindemann
1936 Ellie Wood P.K. Baxter
1937 Walton Perry Davis, Jr.
1938 Archie Dean, Jr.
1939 Hugh Dean
1940 James Thomas, Jr.
1941 William C. Steinkraus
1942 William P. Dunn, III
1943 Anne Morningstar
1944 Alice Babcock
1945 Nancy Dean
1946 Elaine Moore
1947 Frank Chapot
1948 Charlotte Hanlon
1949 Myrna Jackson Felvy
1950 Mary Gay Huffard
1951 G. Baker Schroeder, Jr.
1952 George Morris
1953 Glena Lee Maduro
1954 Ronnie Martini
1955 Wilson Dennehy
1956 Barbara Friedemann
1957 J. Michael Plumb
1958 Wendy Hanson
1959 Hank Minchin
1960 Mary Mairs
1961 Bernie Traurig
1962 Carol Altman
1963 Wendy Mairs
1964 Lane Schultz
1965 Chrystine Jones
1966 Debbie Wilson Jenkins
1967 Conrad Homefeld
1968 Brooke Hodgson
1970 Fred Bauer
1971 Anna Jane White
1972 Leslie Burr
1973 Michael Patrick
1974 Alex Dunaif
1975 Katharine Burdsall
1976 Collette Lozins
1977 Francie Steinwedell
1978 Michael Sasso
1979 Gary Young
1980 Laura Tidball
1981 Lisa Castellucci
1982 Peter Wylde
1983 Linda Kossick
1984 Francesca Mazella
1985 Steve Heinicke
1986 Scott Hofstetter
1987 Stacia Klein
1988 Christy Conrad
1989 Raymond Texel
1990 Lauren Kay
1991 Peter Lutz
1992 Nicole Shahinian
1993 Kelley Farmer
1994 Leslie Fishback
1995 Megan Johnstone
1996 Lauren Bass
1997 Keri Kampsen
1998 Erynn Ballard
1999 Emily Williams
2000 Avery Dimmig
2001 Brian Walker
2002 Erin Stewart
2003 Mathew Sereni
2004 Megan Young
2005 Brianne Goutal
2006 Maggie McAlary
2007 Kimberly McCormack
2008 Jessica Springsteen
2009 Zazou Hoffman
2010 Haley Barnhill

MACLAY CHAMPIONSHIP TRAINER AWARD WINNERS OVER THE YEARS

1987 Frank Madden and William Cooney
1988 Christina Schlusemeyer, Bobby Braswell and Beacon Hill
1989 Michael Henaghan and Gary Zook
1990 Karen Healey Stables
1991 Andre Dignelli and Coker Farm
1992 Bruce Burr and Sari Burr, Brian Lenehan, Leslie Burr Lenehan, Tim Grubb and Michelle Grubb
1993 Don Stewart, Jr., Scott Hofstetter, Missy Clark and Bibby Farmer
1994 Tom Wright and Missy Clark
1995 Linda Hough, Sutton Place and Cynthia Hankins
1996 Jeff Gogul and Missy Clark
1997 Christina Schlusemeyer, Bobby Braswell and Beacon Hill
1998 David Ballard and Missy Clark
1999 Don Stewart, Scott Hofstetter, Missy Clark and Cody Williams
2000 Don Stewart, Scott Hofstetter and Bill Cooney
2001 Missy Clark
2002 Don Stewart, Bill Cooney, Karen Healey and Susan Humes
2003 Archibald Cox, III
2004 Christina Schlusemeyer and Bobby Braswell
2005 Frank and Stacia Madden
2006 Andre Dignelli
2007 Kristy McCormack, Missy Clark and John Brennan
2008 Stacia Madden
2009 Missy Clark and John Brennan
2010 Missy Clark, John Brennan and Tom Wright

2011 NHS Maclay Regional Championships

Region 1: Grand Fall Classic
Region 2: Old Salem Farm
Region 3: North Florida Hunter Jumper Association
Region 4: Kentucky National Horse Show
Region 5: St. Louis National Charity
Region 6: High Prairie Fall Classic
Region 7: The Northwest Autumn Finals
Region 8: Oaks Blenheim Fall Tournament

In addition to hosting the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay Finals, the show will feature a complete schedule of 'AA'-rated hunter divisions, a big money Open Jumper division with a major Grand Prix, and as always, the signature event of the National Horse Show, the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay Finals.

Founded in 1883 at the original Madison Square Garden, the National Horse Show is America's oldest indoor horse show, firmly established as a major fixture on the national and international sports and social event calendars. The National Horse Show Association's primary activity is the annual production of the National Horse Show and all ancillary events. Over the years, the National Horse Show has provided financial aid to many worthwhile charities.

For more information on the National Horse Show Association of America, Limited, please visit www.nhs.org.