18 year old Holly Carter, from Regina Saskatchewan, began showing in the Grassroots classes at provincial quarter horse shows in 2014. Her passion for the all-around competition helped strengthen her horsemanship skills as both an English and Western rider. Competing in western Canada between 2015 and 2019, Holly earned multiple Circuit and All-Around Youth, Novice Youth and Open Awards from SQHA (Saskatchewan), QHAA (Alberta), and MQHA (Manitoba), and holds 2018 Canadian National Championship titles in hunt seat equitation and open green trail, as well as reserves in trail, equitation and horsemanship. Holly is a 2019 AQHYA World Show Qualifier in showmanship, horsemanship, hunt seat equitation, trail and western pleasure. When not around horses, Holly enjoys designing and sewing her own show clothing, downhill skiing, and trail running with her dog. She is committed to her academics and had the honour of being selected as her high school’s 2019 Schulich Leadership nominee. Currently attending Baylor University in Waco, Texas, Holly is studying Health Science and is a proud member of the NCAA equestrian team. Holly is very excited for this opportunity to represent Team Canada as an alternate rider!
17 year old Abby Schaap from Midland Ontario is thrilled to representing Canada for the second time, this time as a rider. Abby is ecstatic to be traveling and competing in the Netherlands especially as she has family from there. Being on Team Canada has been a dream of hers since she started riding quarter horses. Abby has been riding horses since she was 2. She started out on a Shetland pony and when she out-grew her pony, she moved on to a larger pony and began showing in the jumper classes. Abby eventually out grew this pony as well, and moved on to a quarter horse and fell in love with them. After watching her aunt show at the quarter horse circuits, she too wanted to begin showing, both in English and western. Abby now shows her horse Riley, whom she got as 2 year old and is now 7. Her success in the show pen has earned her OQHA awards, multiple high point award and circuit awards, and multiple all-round awards with Ontario Area 3. She has also had success placing top 10 in the showmanship and equitation at the AQHA East Level 1 Championships and most recently by being a finalist at the Built Ford Youth World Show in hunt seat equitation. Outside of riding horses Abby enjoys boating, camping and spending time with friends. Abby is very proud to be representing Canada as rider at YWC 2020!
Joining team Canada’s rider roster for 2020 is 16 year old Brianna Carr from Calgary, Alberta. As an NRHA competitor, Brianna has been competing in reining events across North America for eight years. She has shown successfully throughout Western Canada and has qualified and shown at the North American Affiliate Championships in Oklahoma. In 2018 she earned the title of Youth 14-18 reserve champion and multiple top ten placings in the Rookie classes at the NAAC in Oklahoma. While Brianna has focused on reining she has also trained and shown in all-round events. When not showing, Brianna keeps herself occupied in the horse world by lending a helping hand to all those around her as well as practicing and striving for improvement. Brianna is looking forward to this incredible opportunity of bringing her skills and experience to Team Canada in the Netherlands in 2020.
16 year old Ellie Gerbrandt from Roberts Creek British Columbia is thrilled to be returning to Team Canada as a rider for the 2020 Youth World Cup. Ellie competes in the all-around events at top level shows throughout the US. Ellie has earned top 10 placings at the All American Quarter Horse Congress in hunt seat equitation and showmanship, as well as top 15 in horsemanship. She was the gold medallist in hunt seat equitation at the 2018 Youth World Cup earning the title of World Champion. Over the years she has won many circuit championships and all around awards including some from the Arizona Sun Circuit and the Level 1 Championship Show (west). Outside of showing Ellie enjoys helping out at the local retirement home and giving back to the community. She is looking forward to meeting new people, having fun with her team members, and learning many new things!
17 year old Amber Zabel from Caledon, Ontario has been riding for 12 years. Horseback riding is an extremely big part of her life and she is thrilled for the opportunity to take part in her first Youth World Cup as a rider.
18 year old Kamyl Mathieu, from Sorel-Tracy, Quebec is thrilled to be joining Team Canada as a rider. Kamyl has been riding horses since she was 4 years old and started showing when she was 6. She is an all-around rider who especially loves and excels in showmanship, horsemanship and hunt seat equitation. Kamyl has qualified two times for the AQHA Youth World Show and achieved her superior in showmanship. Most recently she was thrilled to show her horse for the first time at the All American Quarter Horse Congress this past month. Kamyl has been fortunate to have had the opportunity to ride and show many horses and has developed her riding skills by doing so. Not only is Kamyl an accomplished rider, she is also a top student. She is also proud to have been a part of a 2017 volunteer experience where she went to Ecuador to help the members of a community there. Being a member of Team Canada has been a goal for Kamyl and she is excited to be bringing her skills to Team Canada as we travel to the Netherlands.
Della Cryderman has been breeding, training and showing Quarter Horses for over thirty years and presently owns and operates a equine training facility. Her focus for Cryderman Training Stables is to prepare horses and their exhibitors for national and international competition. While the majority of the horse/rider combinations whom she coaches show at American Quarter Horse circuits, she also coaches several dressage and jumping horses/riders. Cryderman has travelled and shared her knowledge with riders who have committed to furthering their skills, and given many clinics ranging from first time riders to numerous youth and amateurs who became AQHA Superior Award winners, AQHA Champions, AQHA Versatility Champions, All-American Congress and AQHA World Show finalists. Cryderman’s daughter, Jessie Godin was a gold-medalist member of Team Canada while competing at the Youth World Cup hosted by Australia in 2004. Della coached Jessie to 4th place in Amateur Hunt Seat Equitation during the 2016 AQHA World Championship Show. Cryderman served as President of the Thunder Bay Quarter Horse Club for 15 years and as President of the North Superior Quarter Horse Council for 10 years.
Karen Westerback has been involved with Quarter Horses for approximately 20 years and competes as an amateur on AQHA show circuits in Canada and the U.S. She has achieved two AQHA Amateur Superior Awards and is an AQHA Amateur Champion. Westerback is employed as a Youth Services residential worker for youth who are at risk with the law, helping to develop therapeutic plans for release from custody. She has served her local Quarter Horse associations over the years as Secretary, Vice-President and Youth Advisor, and has been actively involved in major fund-raising events and organizing. In the past year, she has acquired a new role as a ring steward for several large AQHA show circuits including the Minnesota Corporate Challenge and the Bob Yanz Masters and now serves as the President of the North Superior Quarter Horse Association.
WATCHING CHILDREN GROW…
In 1985, Skip Parker of Carrollton, Texas was invited to meet a man from Australia at the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport to discuss kids and American Quarter Horses. The gentlemen’s conversation ended that day with Parker agreeing to gather a team of youth from the United States and take them to Australia to participate in the 1986 International Youth Quarter Horse World Cup. That summer the United States team traveled to the land of kangaroos for a week of education, camaraderie and competition. Little did Parker know that his adventures down under would connect him to an event that would become like his own child to nourish, foster and encourage.
Being the newcomer in Australia and not really knowing what to expect, Parker eagerly volunteered to host the next International Youth Quarter Horse World Cup in Fort Worth, Texas. (The event is held every two years and is hosted by a different country each time.) The World Cup committee, consisting of a representative from each participating country, unanimously agreed to meet again in the Lone Star state in 1988. With the local support of Wrangler and many dedicated Texas Quarter Horse members, the 1988 World Cup was a monumental success.
From 1988, Parker had continued to serve as the ringleader coordinating host countries, soliciting sponsors, organizing educational seminars and assisting the World Cup committee with routine tasks of implementing such a global event. It was in 1996 in Flagstaff that the thought of passing the torch first crossed his mind. “I had reached the point where I couldn’t do any more than I was already doing but I wanted the program to continue to be the success it had always been,” Parker said. With AQHA staff in full force at the Arizona event, it was the perfect setting to sit down with the entire World Cup committee and look at what opportunities were available for the continuation of the program.
Fast forward to March 1997 in Dallas, Texas. The event’s most illustrious leaders including Canadian AQHA Director Emeritus Genevieve Matheson, AQHA Youth Activities Committee member Antonio Giraudini of Italy, and of course, Parker, who was also a member of the AQHA Youth Activities Committee, converged at the 1997 AQHA Convention to take a closer look at how AQHA and the International Youth Quarter Horse World Cup could team up for the event to continue to grow.
After several more meetings and many months of discussion it was agreed that AQHA would shoulder the management responsibilities of the World Cup. Now, almost eleven years after initial talks, AQHA is busily planning this very successful addition to their list of youth programs.
A varied combination of teams have traveled thousands of miles to take part in what has been called “the most educational and culturizing event for youth ever to enter the equine industry.”
AQHA Youth World Cup competitions have been hosted by:
Alberta, Canada in 1990
Australia in 1992
Germany in 1994
Flagstaff, Arizona in 1996
Amarillo, Texas in 1998
Italy in 2000
Amarillo, Texas in 2002
Australia in 2004
Amarillo, Texas in 2006
Ontario, Canada in 2008
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 2010
Kreuth, Germany in 2012
College Station/Bryant, Texas in 2014
Tamworth, NSW, Australia in 2016
College Station/Bryan, Texas in 2018
The Netherlands in 2020 – On March 26, the 2020 American Quarter Horse Youth World Cup organizers announced in a statement posted on Facebook that the 2020 Youth World Cup, scheduled for July 3-12 in the Netherlands, had been cancelled. Instead the event went forward on a virtual platform!
AQHYA Youth World Cup events have been held twice in Canada, in 1990 in Alberta and in 2008 in Ontario. Up to sixteen countries enter teams of five youth riders plus one coach and/or manager, who take part in educational seminars, specific discipline clinics, leadership training and finally, competition. Up to five additional non-competing youth from each country may also be invited by their International AQHA Affiliate to attend the educational and leadership portions of the week’s events. Just as importantly, all individuals attending the week’s programs have the opportunity to share in different cultures, meet peers from opposite ends of the earth and make their world seem just a little bit smaller.
The child that Skip Parker so fondly nourished, fostered and encouraged grew to be mature, successful and self sufficient. It is what all good parents wish for their children…and what all good parents like Parker should be commended for.
English
French