SALT LAKE CITY (March 26, 2019) – The Komatsu Equipment Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo presented by Zions Bank in Salt Lake City has become a must stop on the summer rodeo schedule for contestants from the junior high level all the way to the pros of the sport. Not only does the $1 million purse make it attractive but so does the Gold, Silver and Bronze medals awarded to the top three, setting this rodeo apart from any other rodeo in the world.
“We strive to bring the best in the sport of rodeo to the Great Salt Valley to celebrate Utah’s heritage and continue one of Utah’s longest-standing traditions,” said Dan Shaw, Chairman of the board for the Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo. “Due to our partnership with PBR (Professional Bull Riders), WCRA (World Champions Rodeo Alliance) and our rodeo partners via the trial events, we are able to bring great talent from all areas for this one-of-a-kind Gold Medal Rodeo.”
A total of 256 competitors will have a chance to punch their ticket to the Days of ’47 Cowboy Games and Rodeo and take their shot at a share of the $1 million in prize money and the coveted medals. The rodeo will showcase the seven standard rodeo events and will feature 32 competitors in each with eight competitors per performance starting on Friday, July 19. The top two from each performance, along with two via the Wild Card category, will advance to the Gold Medal Round on July 24 where ten competitors in each event will compete in a sudden-death format with the winner collecting a Gold Medal and $50,000 cash.
Contestants in all events will have a few avenues in which to qualify – either via the Days of ’47 Qualification trial events or the WCRA path. Bull riders will also have opportunity via the PBR as noted below.
The Days of ’47 qualification route, including bull riders will consist of the following:
2018 Calgary Stampede Champion
2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games and Rodeo Medalists *top 3
2019 Lewis Feild Bulls and Broncs *roughstock only
2019 RodeoHouston Super Series Champions
2019 Denver Rodeo All-Star
2019 Rodeo Corpus Christi (Texas)
2019 Utah Timed Event Classic WCRA Western Quarter-Finals*timed-event only
2019 Santa Maria (Calif.) Elks Rodeo
2019 College National Finals Rodeo Champions
The WCRA qualifications will consist of the following:
2019 Chicago, Ill. Champion *includes bull rider
2019 Green Bay, Wis. Champion *includes bull rider
Top 20 in WCRA Virtual Qualifier points as of July 8, 2019 *not including bull riding
The remaining 20 bull riders will earn qualification based on the following:
2019 PBR Fresno, CA Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Event
2019 PBR Casper, WY Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Event
2019 PBR Bakersfield, CA Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Event
2019 PBR Billings, MT Unleash the Beast Tour Event
2019 Albuquerque, NM Unleash the Beast Tour Event
2019 PBR World Standings (Top 3 as of June 24th)
2019 WCRA VRQ Standings (12 athletes)
Bull riders will need to have a PBR card and be registered on the WRCA App to compete while all others must be registered with the WCRA to compete.
“Last year our Gold Medal Round featured world champions, defending Days of ’47 champions, college champions and an 11-year old barrel racer further proving our event features all the best the sport of rodeo has to offer,” noted Tommy Joe Lucia, General Manager of the Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo. “We hope that not only the contestants but also the fans will make this a destination event where they can experience Utah and Life Elevated. Fans not only have the opportunity to experience a world class rodeo at night but can enjoy all the adventure Utah has to offer during the day.”
The Komatsu Equipment Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo presented by Zions Bank, July 19-20 and 22-24, will take place at the $17.5 million state-of-the-art Days of ’47 Arena at the Utah State Fairpark, custom designed and built for rodeo. The venue—an outdoor arena located in the heart of Salt Lake City—features over 10,000 stadium-style seats.
For only the fifth time in the history of rodeo, riders will have an opportunity to compete for Gold, Silver or Bronze Medals. The first two times were in conjunction with the Olympic Winter Games in Calgary (1988) and Salt Lake City (2002), when rodeo was part of the Cultural Olympiad and the other two times being the Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo in 2017 and 2018. The medals that will be awarded at the Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo will be produced by OC Tanner, the same company that made the Olympic medals for the champions of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games.
Tickets are currently on sale at smithstix.com. For more information on the event visit www.daysof47cowboygames.com.
The Komatsu Equipment Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo will broadcast exclusively on PBR’s RidePass via RidePass.com or the RidePass mobile app.
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Current list of contestants who have earned qualification for 2019 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games and Rodeo
Bareback Riding
Richmond Champion – 2018 Calgary Stampede
Wyatt Denny – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
*JR Vezain – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo (will be unable to compete due to injury)
Ty Breuer – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Tristan Hansen– 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo (replacing JR Vezain)
Kaycee Feild – 2019 WCRA Windy City Roundup, Chicago
Shane O’Connell – 2019 DO47 Lewis Feild Bulls & Broncs Event
Tilden Hooper – 2019 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series
Steer Wrestling
Matt Reeves – 2018 Calgary Stampede
Justin Shaffer – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Rowdy Parrott – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Bridger Anderson – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Tyler Pearson – 2019 WCRA Windy City Roundup, Chicago
Josh Garner – 2019 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series
Team Roping – Headers
Kellan Johnson – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Matt Sherwood – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Riley Minor – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Garrett Tonozzi – 2019 WCRA Windy City Roundup, Chicago
Ty Blasingame – 2019 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series
Team Roping – Heelers
Carson Johnson – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Will Woodfin – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Brady Minor – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Joe Mattern – 2019 WCRA Windy City Roundup, Chicago
Kyle Lockett – 2019 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series
Saddle Bronc Riding
Zeke Thurston – 2018 Calgary Stampede
Cody DeMoss – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Wyatt Casper – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Isaac Diaz – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Colt Gordon – 2019 WCRA Windy City Roundup, Chicago
Ross Griffin – 2019 DO47 Lewis Feild Bulls & Broncs Event
Jesse Wright – 2019 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series
Tie-Down Roping
Tuf Cooper – 2018 Calgary Stampede
Cory Solomon – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
JC Malone – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Caleb Smidt – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Shane Hanchey – 2019 WCRA Windy City Roundup, Chicago
Michael Otero – 2019 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series
Barrel Racing
Hailey Kinsel – 2018 Calgary Stampede
Lisa Lockhart – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Chani Graves – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Cheyenne Wimberley – 2019 WCRA Windy City Roundup, Chicago
Nellie Williams-Miller – 2019 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series
Bull Riding
Marcos Gloria – 2018 Calgary Stampede
Derek Kolbaba – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Alisson De Souza – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Garrett Smith – 2018 Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Chandler Bounds – 2019 WCRA Windy City Roundup, Chicago
Coleman Entze – 2019 DO47 Lewis Feild Bulls & Broncs Event
Trevor Kastner – 2019 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series
Marco Antonio Eguchi – 2019 PBR Fresno, CA Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Event
Remaining schedule
– 2019 PBR Casper, WY Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Event – March 30
– 2019 PBR Bakersfield, CA Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Event – April 6
– 2019 Denver Rodeo All-Star – April 12-13
– 2019 PBR Billings, MT Unleash the Beast Tour Event – April 12-14
– 2019 Rodeo Corpus Christi – April 25-28
– 2019 Utah Timed Event Classic – May 2-4
– 2019 Albuquerque, NM Unleash the Beast Tour Event – May 17-19
– 2019 Santa Maria Elks Rodeo – May 30 – June 2
– 2019 WCRA Title Town Stampede, Green Bay – June 1
– 2019 College National Finals Rodeo Champion – June 9-15
– 2019 PBR World Standings (Top 3) – June 24th
– 2019 WCRA VRQ Standings (20 athletes all events except bull riding; 12 athletes for bull riding) July 8
About Days of ‘47
The Komatsu Equipment Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo presented by Zions Bank, takes place at the all-new, $17.5 million, state-of-the-art Days of ’47 Arena at the Utah State Fairpark each July. The venue—an outdoor arena located in the heart of Salt Lake City—features over 10,000 stadium-style seats. The Days of ’47 Rodeo is one of Utah’s longest-standing traditions – celebrating Utah’s heritage since 1847. The rodeo, and other Days of ’47 events, commemorate the day – July 24, 1847 – when a determined company of Mormon pioneers realized their dreams upon entering the Great Salt Valley. The Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo is a private, non-profit, volunteer, charitable organization. Our mission is to honor Utah’s pioneer heritage and educate Utah’s kids. Please visit daysof47cowboygames.com for more information.
