NOVEMBER 4, 2009 – TORONTO, ONTARIO – The 2009 Royal Horse Show will open this Friday, November 6th, with an action-packed weekend highlighting the best in Canadian equestrian sport. Held as part of the 87th Royal Agricultural Winter Fair, The Royal Horse Show offers over $750,000 in total prize money and runs from November 6 through 15 at the Ricoh Coliseum, Exhibition Place. The entire Horse Show will be webcast live, with an on-demand subscription service available, at www.royalfair.org.

Defending Canadian Champion Keean White will head into the weekend hungry to reclaim his title in the $100,000 Canadian Show Jumping Championships presented by Greenhawk. The two-phase event will headline the evenings of Friday, November 6, and Saturday, November 7. White will face stiff competition from 23 of Canada’s top riders including veterans of the Olympics (six, including nine-time Olympian Ian Millar), Pan-Am Games, World Cup Finals and numerous Nations Cup competitions.

“We’ve had a great show season so far, with 24 top ten finishes, a first place in the Nations Cup in Wellington and a second in the Nations Cup in Barcelona,” remarked White. “I am looking forward to defending my title this weekend!”

“The Canadian Championships are one of the major highlights of the year for Jump Canada,” explains John Taylor, Chairman of Jump Canada, the committee of Equine Canada responsible for overseeing all jumper activities in Canada. “We are thrilled to have the top riders from across the country together competing for $100,000 in prize money. It’s going to be an exciting weekend of jumping in Toronto!”

Highlights of the second week’s International jumper division includes the $100,000 CN FEI World CupTM Qualifier, the $50,000 Weston Canadian Open, the inaugural $50,000 Royal Team Challenge and the $75,000 Ricoh Big Ben International Grand Prix.

This year’s Royal Horse Show will run November 6th through 15th, 2009. By the time the competition ends, nearly $750,000 will have been awarded in prize money, making The Royal the most prestigious and hotly contested event of the season. For more information, media accreditation, live webcasting, complete schedule, results and to purchase tickets, please visit www.royalfair.org.