August 6, 2009 – Ottawa, Ontario – The Canadian Jumper Development Series has changed the date of the Ontario Championships, Eastern Canadian Championships, and the National Finals.

The Ontario Championships, Eastern Canadian Championships and National Finals will take place August 26-30 at during the Canadian Country Classic I at Halton Place in Halton Hills, ON. The Championships were originally scheduled for September 9-13, also at Halton Place.

“Due to conflicts with the Spruce Meadows “Masters” Tournament and other competitions, several riders asked if it would be possible to move the dates as they very much wanted to participate in the Young Horse Finals,” said Phil Henning, Chair of the Canadian Jumper Development Series. “We spoke to Timur Leckebusch and his team at Halton Place and they were kind enough to move the dates for us.”

An unprecedented total of $91,000 in prize money will be offered between the Ontario Championships, Eastern Canadian Championships, Western Canadian Championships, and the National Finals

The Rocky Mountain Classic II in Calgary, AB, will play host to the $20,000 Western Canadian Young Horse Championships over two days, August 28 and 30. Held for the past three years at Thunderbird Show Park in Langley, BC, holding the Western Canadian Championships in Alberta has encouraged strong participation from local breeders and riders.

Now in its 12th year, the purpose of the Canadian Young Horse Jumper Development Series is to encourage the development of young show jumping talent and to give Canadian breeders additional incentives to breed superior show jumping prospects. Competing on a level playing field, the horses are divided according to age and jump at a level suited to their development. This careful development allows the horses to gain valuable experience and advance to the higher levels of show jumping competition with confidence. The Canadian Young Horse Jumper Development Series also gives prospective buyers for the hunter and jumper markets an opportunity to view a large group of prospects in a competition setting.

Proud sponsors and supporters of the Canadian Young Horse Jumper Development Series include Jump Canada, the Ontario Hunter Jumper Association, Gary Cooper, Dutch Masters Construction Services Ltd., Equus Integral (exclusive Canadian distributor of Cavalor and Devoucoux), Henry Equestrian, KingRidge Stables, Lothlorien, Dr. Alan Manning, Mill Creek Stables, Peter Miller, Preston Sand and Gravel, Jennifer Rogers, Scotia McLeod, Sher-Al Farms, and W. Charlot Farms. An additional donation was made in memory of Morgan Firestone.

For more information, please visit the Canadian Young Horse Jumper Development Series website at www.jumperdevelopment.com.