SAUGERTIES, NY (November 5, 2013) – With the 2014 HITS Championship qualifying season on the horizon, HITS, Inc. unveiled the debut of the $250,000 Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Prix to be held as part of the HITS Championship in Saugerties New York, September 3-7, 2014. HITS is pleased to announce that  Bayer’s Legend^® (hyaluronate sodium)Injectable Solution has come on board as the title sponsor of the class and the presenting sponsor of all qualifying classes, which will offer junior/amateur-owner jumper riders the opportunity to compete for prize money not offered anywhere else in the country.

Dedicated to making HITS Championship the premier show jumping event in North America, HITS President and CEO Tom Struzzieri added the Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Prix to the slate in 2014 to give yet another group of riders the opportunity to participate in the historic year-end finals.

“This group of riders was missing a true championship at this level,” added Struzzieri. “This class will be supremely popular, and it complements the HITS Championship package by offering yet another prestigious championship class with unprecedented prize money.”

The Bayer’s Legend^® Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Prix is welcomed to the HITS Championship schedule that already includes the Zoetis $1 Million Grand Prix, the Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final and HITS $250,000 Hunter Prix Final. With the addition, the HITS Championship will now boast some of the world’s leading equine and mainstream companies as sponsors, as well as over $2 million in prize money during a single weekend of competition.

“Bayer is extremely excited to be partnering with HITS as the Title Sponsor of the Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Prix. It is a perfect fit for our equine products, as they will be highlighted to the HITS competitors. We look forward to watching the competitors in the preliminary rounds, as well as the finals of this class,” commented Scott King, DVM Equine Products Manager at Bayer HealthCare Animal Health.

Beginning this January, Junior/Amateur-Owner jumper riders from coast to coast will have the opportunity to qualify for this innovative offering from HITS. Weekly qualifiers, all sponsored by Bayer’s Legend^® will be hosted at HITS circuits in Thermal, California; Ocala, Florida; Tucson, Arizona; Culpeper, Virginia and Saugerties, New York. To qualify, a rider must compete in at least five junior/amateur-owner jumper high classics at any combination of HITS shows in 2014. The final start list will include 40 riders based on the official rider rankings and five additional riders chosen at the discretion of management. Once qualified, a rider may choose any horse for the final.

HITS regularly offers High Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classics at all of its horse shows with prize money ranging from $7,500 to $25,000, and is pleased to continue the trend of offering top prize money to these riders. With 37 qualifiers spread from coast to coast, the 2014 qualifying season will offer almost $400,000 in prize money.  

For a complete list of 2014 HITS Horse Show dates, as well as official qualifying specifications for the Bayer’s Legend^® Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Prix and other HITS Championship classes, please visit HitsShows.com.

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Junior/Amateur-Owner jumper riders now have the opportunity to qualify for a $250,000 final thanks to HITS, Inc. and Bayer’s Legend^®.