The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic called off
Board that organizes horse show says decision is ‘best for everyone under these circumstances’
One of Northeast Ohio’s premier equestrian events won’t be held this summer because of health and safety risks stemming from the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The 2020 Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic, originally slated for July 2-12, has been canceled “in response to the COVID-19 public health crisis.” That decision was made and announced recently by the Chagrin Valley Professional Horsemen’s Association Board of Trustees, which organizes and conducts the annual show.
“We considered many options and reviewed communications on (COVID-19) issued from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, United States Equestrian Federation and other regulatory organizations,” the board stated in a news release.
Based upon its research, the Chagrin Valley PHA board said it “believes that the (cancellation) decision is the best for everyone under these circumstances.”
Held each July at Cleveland Metroparks Polo Field in Moreland Hills, the Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic is a world-class equestrian event that not only awards prize money to competitors, but also donates a portion of proceeds to a variety of local charities. Other popular features of the event are a Riders with Disabilities Horse Show and a Horse and Hound Relay.
One of the historical milestones of the Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic occurred on July 25, 1965, when the event hosted North America’s first showjumping grand prix.
Known for many years as the Cleveland Grand Prix, the culminating event of the show attracted a new sponsor in 2018 and now bears the title of the Lindsay Maxwell Charitable Fund Cleveland Grand Prix.
Over the course of 11 days, the Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic each year attracts more than 600 horses from 30 states and multiple countries, attracts around 10,000 spectators, and contributes about $3.6 million to the region’s economy, according to a fact sheet on the event’s website.
The Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic board said it would like to have a smaller horse show in the fall, if the threat of COVID-19 recedes and Ohio Health Department rules on group gatherings are revised.
“However, there are too many unknowns be able to make definite plans,” the panel stated.
Currently, the Polo Field that has been the longtime home of the Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic is closed to rentals, along with all other sites owned by Cleveland Metroparks.
The 2020 Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic, originally slated for July 2-12, has been canceled “in response to the COVID-19 public health crisis.”