The Canadian Show Jumping Team will kick off the Longines FEI Jumping Nations Cup™ 2020 series at the Palm Beach Masters, taking place Feb. 11-16, 2020, in Wellington, FL.

The $230,000 CSIO 5* Longines FEI Jumping Nations Cup™ USA on Feb. 16 represents the first of three official qualifiers in 2019 for the North America, Central America and Caribbean league. Canada will be aiming to rack up qualifying points towards the Longines FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping Final, set to take place Oct. 1-4, 2020, in Barcelona, ESP.

The four-member Canadian Show Jumping Team will be selected from the below athletes:

The following Canadian athletes will also compete in the CSIO division as individuals:

The chef d’équipe for the senior team during the CSIO 5* Palm Beach Masters will be Mark Laskin of Langley, BC.

The Nations Cup will take place in the Grass Arena at Deeridge Farm at 1:30 p.m. ET and be available to watch through live streaming here.

Following the Palm Beach Masters, the Canadian Show Jumping Team will move on to the second leg, hosted at the CSIO 5* Coapexpan in Mexico from April 30-May 3, before closing out the 2019 league series on home soil at the CSIO 5* Odlum Brown BC Open, taking place at Thunderbird Show Park in Langley, BC from May 26-31.

Canada will also be well represented by the younger generation of show jumpers at the Palm Beach Masters during the $8,000 CSIO-J Team Competition and $10,000 CSIO-Y Enviro Equine Team Competition on Feb. 15. These youth Nations Cups provide up-and-coming athletes with the chance to gain experience in a team atmosphere on the international stage.

The following teams will compete for Canada:

Young Rider Team

Junior Team

“I’m looking forward to the Nations Cup this week,” said Jumping Youth Development Program Advisor and chef d’équipe for the youth teams, Dayton Gorsline of Okotoks, AB. “Both of our teams have a nice mix of experience and this is a great opportunity for some to get their first experience in a Nations Cup format. The Talent ID Committee also wants to congratulate Sam Walker, who anchored our Young Riders gold medal winning team at the 2019 North American Youth Championships, for being named to the senior Canadian team.”

The CSIO-J Junior classes are open to athletes between the ages of 14-18, with courses set to a maximum of 1.40m. Athletes aged 16-21 can compete in the CSIO-Y classes, with fence heights up to 1.50m.

Supporting both the senior and youth teams on the ground will be Equestrian Canada Manager of Sport – Jumping Department, Karen Hendry-Ouellette.

For more information on the Longines FEI Jumping Nations Cup™ USA, visit https://palmbeachmasters.com.