DAIREN, CT — John Ammerman, manager of the 71st Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show, has announced an impressive line-up of officials for this year’s horse show, June 12-18 at the Ox Ridge Hunt Club in Darien, CT.

Judging the jumper divisions will be Mike Christian of Ft. Worth TX, and Oliver Kennedy of Ellicott City, MD.

Anne and Robert Braswell of Ocala, FL, and Phillip DeVita of Apopka, FL will judge hunters.

Course designers this year will be Conrad Homfeld of Southampton, NY, in the jumper ring and William Glass of Bokellia, FL, in the hunter ring. Homefeld, who won team gold and individual silver medals at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, will be designing the courses at Ox Ridge just a few weeks after doing the same job at the Show Jumping World Cup final in Las Vegas.

Dr. Robert C. Rost of Branchville, NJ, and Ms Beverly A. Bedard of Camp Hill, PA, will serve as stewards for the show.

One of the nation’s oldest and largest horse shows, the Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show features the $35,000 Ox Ridge Grand Prix, as U.S. Equestrian Team Regional Show Jumping Championship, on Sunday, June 18 at 2 pm. Last year the class was won by two-time Olympian Leslie Howard of Westport, CT riding Isper. Howard, who after Ox Ridge last year went on to help the United States Equestrian Team win the team silver medal at the 1999 Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada, is expected to return to defend her title. She is expected to compete against such top competitors as Peter Leone, Peter Wylde, Anne Kursinski, Chris Kappler and other world class competitors who will be seeking the title in New England’s oldest Grand Prix.

The Floral Jump Contest, a colorful and beautiful part of the Ox Ridge Grand Prix Opening Ceremonies on June 18, adds creative flair to the Grand Prix show jumping course. Seven area florists and nurseries will compete for the blue ribbon and two round-trip airline tickets to London, England donated by American Airlines®, the Official Airline of the Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show. The runner-up will receive two round-trip tickets to Los Angeles. This year’s theme will be “Something Special in the Air.”

A portion of the proceeds from the Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show benefits the Center for Hope, a non-profit agency in Darien, CT, which provides support and counseling for children and families living with life-threatening illnesses. Each year, the Center for Hope relies on special events for almost 27% of its annual income. As the designated charity of Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show for the past nine years, the Center for Hope has had the opportunity to hold the Hunt for Hope dinner dance and the Hunt for Hope Luncheon, sponsored by Liz Claiborne, and Fashion Show with fashions supplied by J. McLaughlin, at the show grounds during the horse show. In 1999, these two events raised 27% of the Center’s annual Budget.

For more information on the Ox Ridge Charity Horse Show, please call 203/656-1745.