Congratulations again to all our winners and thank you to our sponsors: Schlesse Saddlery, Mark & Vicki Nichols of Equestrian Factory Outlet who co-sponsored the Leading Lady and Male Rider Awards and Nicole Kybartas of Exclusively Equine Training and Sales who co-sponsored the TB Awards.
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The winners of the draw for two free OHTA memberships for 2010 were Kim French and Peter Carr. Congratulations!
The OHTA launched a Volunteer Incentive Program last year and it continued to go strong! The program was a Volunteer Sign Up sheet that each Organizer and Secretary had at every Ontario event. Each time you volunteered at an Ontario event and signed the volunteer sheet, it entitled you to one entry in a draw for cash.
Thank you to all those who generously donated to the fund for these awards during the competition season.
The 2009 winners are:
- 1st Place of $500 was Susan Richardson
- 2nd Place of $250 was Samantha Irwin
- 3rd Place of $150 was Susan Carr $100
- 4th Place of $100 was Daria Ivandaeva
Also, many thanks also goes out to Andrew Bailini of Photography By Bailini for coming to the banquet and taking pictures for us. Please check out Andrew's website for all the pictures of the banquet.
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2009 Year End OHTA Awards
Junior
Pre-Entry Division:
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Junior
Entry Division:
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Senior
Entry Division:
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Open
Entry Division:
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Junior
Pre-Training Division:
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Senior
Pre-Training Division:
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Open
Pre-Training Division:
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Junior
Training Division:
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Senior
Training Division: Champion trophy donated in memory of Grace
Faggiani
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Open
Training Division:
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Preliminary Division: Champion trophy donated in memory John
Treanor
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Open
Preliminary Division:
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Intermediate Division: Champion trophy donated in memory Joan Kendall
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| Novice
Adult Division: A novice adult is someone who is over the age of 21, competing at the Entry or Pre-Training level, who has never competed above that level before. This year there were 164 active members in the Novice Adult program that competed in all the events through out the season. The 2009 champions were: Entry Division:
Pre-Training Division:
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| Leading
Male Rider: Champion trophy donated in memory of Kuni Von
Rothstein This trophy is awarded to the male rider who has accumulated the highest total points for their top two horses at the Preliminary level and above.
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| Leading
Female Rider Trophy Trophy is awarded to the female rider who has accumulated the highest total points for their top two horses at the Preliminary level and above.
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| OHTA
Cross Country Award We are very pleased to announce the winner of our inaugural XC Equitation and Style award for 2009. This Diladream trophy is generously sponsored by Kelly Plitz and Dreamcrest Equestrian Centre. The winner was:
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| Veteran
Rider Plaque To qualify for this next award, a rider must let us know that he or she is over 50 years of age (or be nominated by a friend), never have competed at higher than Intermediate level and have accumulated the most points during the season. The 2009 champion was
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| Rubber
Ducky Award This award is given to the person or persons who have had the most spectacular fall into water during the season. Please note that no horses or humans were wounded during these incidents…only a little pride! Every season we have at least one competitor who does a swan dive into the skanky pond water on cross country...and this year we had 3!
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| Horse of
the Year Award This very prestigious award is given to the Ontario based horse that has been active in Ontario competitions and has demonstrated potential to represent Canada at the National and /or International levels. The Horse of the Year award is given to the Ontario based horse competing at the Intermediate and/or 2* level during the current year that has demonstrated potential to represent Canada at the International level in the near future. This award is voted on by the Board of the OHTA, giving due consideration to performance during the season and solicited input from elite coaches. This year's winner is an 11 year old Swedish Warmblood/Thoroughbred mare sired by Holberg and bred by Stefanie Brueseke. "Connie", known as "The Princess" to everyone at her barn, is an alpha mare with definite likes and dislikes that she makes very clear to everyone around her. Through steady and unhurried training at the hands of her very capable rider, she has successfully progressed through the levels exhibiting the talent and potential that will take her to the international stage OHTA's 2009 Horse of the Year is
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| Kaesar
Award This award, kindly sponsored by Anita Nemtin-Gilmour, is in honour of her exceptional horse Kaesar, and for 2009 is presented to the highest placed Ontario based horse in a 4 * event.
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| Unsung
Hero Award This award is one of the most difficult to decide and this year was no exception. We received many nominations and each one deserves our recognition and appreciation for their untiring dedication and support. Along with announcing the recipient of the award, we would like to pay tribute to the rest of the nominees for Unsung Hero. Those nominees were: John Kenno, Kendall McBeath, Nick Matusiak, Evelyn Enright, M.H. Lessard, Jane Tourikian, Susan Roth and, as we have dubbed them, the Young Rider Moms; Alison Morra, Jeanne Lafranier and Lynne Vear, for their contribution to making our sport run. There are so many people who give their time behind the scenes, never asking for recognition. One of the things that make our sport great is the people who contribute so that other competitors, volunteers, and organizers can succeed; people who can turn problems into solutions, and people who can pull off the impossible. This year's award goes to two people who truly embody the spirit of the Unsung Hero. Not only do they devote their time and energy supporting their own local event, but when they recognized that help was needed, they immediately pitched in to help plan, design, and build the Prelim and Intermediate courses at this year's Championships. Despite the hours spent commuting back and forth, they spent weekends working with boundless energy and no complaints. On cross country day they were there with smiles on their faces and hammers in hand to work as repair crew out on course. This year's Unsung Heroes are....
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| Graham
Towers Award The Graham Towers Sportsmanship Award is given to a person who embodied the qualities of sportsmanship and integrity. In his memory, this award is given along with a cheque for $100 from the Graham Towers Fund which has been generously donated to the OHTA in his memory. Kellie Towers, Graham's daughter, couldn't attend the Awards banquet this year to present the award tonight, but she asked that we read this on her behalf. "Hello all. I regret that I cannot be here this evening to present Dad's award. While standing in the back of his pickup at the start box, Dad witnessed both the good and the bad aspects of behaviour that were exhibited under the pressure of competition. But he saw more good than bad so it is appropriate to recognize someone who epitomizes this attitude. Our recipient this evening is an excellent example of someone who shows true sportsmanship, and is always up beat and helpful to fellow competitors. I am not going to list examples of what he has done because I expect, if we were to go around the room, a great number of you would have your own story to tell. I know Dad would be pleased with this selection. Please welcome this year's Graham Towers Award recipient:"
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| TB Of
the Year Awards The Thoroughbred of the Year Awards for 2009 are sponsored by the OHTA in conjunction with Exclusively Equine Training and Sales and are awarded to the top placing Thoroughbred in the Regular and Open Divisions from Entry to Advanced. To qualify, the horse must be Jockey Club registered, have finished in the top 10 in their respective division, and they, their owner and rider must all be Ontario based.
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| Canadian
Warmblood Horse Breeders Association Award The champion was
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| Canadian
Sport Horse Award Beasley Farms, in association with the Canadian Sport Horse Association would like to honour the top placed registered Canadian Sport Horse for 2009. The winner is:
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| Irish
Draught Horse Award Irish horses excel in the eventing discipline and once again the Irish Draught Horse Society of Canada and Pairadox Farm would like to honour the highest placed Canadian registered Irish Draught or Irish Draught cross. The winner for 2009 is:
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| Ontario
Standardbred Eventer Award The Ontario Standardbred Eventer Award is new for 2009. It is sponsored by Janet Zizian and honours registered Standardbreds who have gone on to compete successfully in eventing. In future years we hope to honour Standardbreds at all levels, but for 2009 our winner has competed successfully at the Pre-Training level. The winner is:
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| Canadian
Young Event Horse Awards This series is a wonderful introduction to eventing for young horses and a great venue for breeders to showcase their young horses without breaking the bank! There are four divisions including Future Eventer 3 Yr, 4 year old, 5 year olds and an open division. These 4 year old, 5 year olds and an open division classes are comprised of a dressage test, a jumping test (similar to a short course event), a conformation class and a suitability class, all judged on the horse's potential.
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Young
Rider Divisions:
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Combined Training Series and Short Course Year End
Awards Combined Training Series Winners
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