The North American Riders Group (NARG) has released their Top 24 in 2014 list, and once again, Spruce Meadows holds the top spot.
Four more Canadian shows made the list, including Thunderbird in second place; the Royal in fifth (as the top indoor show); the brand new Royal West in 11th and Rocky Mountain Show Jumping tied for 25th place.
Established five years ago, the NARG is dedicated to improving the sport of show jumping and making North American events the best in the world. Representing the riders, trainers and owners in North America, NARG works openly with show management, governing bodies and associations to bring this goal to fruition.
The NARG scores shows in several categories – footing, stabling, courses/jumps, technical aspects, financial, ceremony, marketing/press Relations, miscellaneous and bonus points – out of a possible 500 points.
In first place, Spruce Meadows scored 478 points (96%), while Thunderbird had 468 points (94%). The American Gold Cup was third with 457 points (91%). In fifth place, the Royal scored 449 points (90%). The Royal West had 421 points (84%) in 11th place and Rocky Mountain Show Jumping had 394 points (79%) in a four-way tie for 25th place.
In 2014, the number of shows receiving a score of 80% or higher nearly doubled from the previous year. In fact, 21 out of the top 25 achieved this, compared to only 11 shows in 2013.
For 2015, the NARG will implement some changes to the scoring system, as shows continue to show such improvement. The current 1-5 point scale, which doesn’t leave much room for one event to rise over another, will be changed to a 1-10 scale, for example. They will also add a “level of competition” category to the scoring system.
To learn more, visit www.narg.org.
More from Horse Sport:
