Horse Sport

Vick Russell

Vick Russell, co-owner of City Show Jumping League nicknamed “City League” will present a concept of the league to the Spartanburg County Council Monday.
City League is a joint venture between Vick Russell and Jimmy Gibbs of Gibbs International to develop a league of world-class show jumpers competing against each other in several Southeastern cities each year.
Its leaders want to organize about 24 teams from the United States, and three from South America. Each of the teams will be named after a city. They will jump in a series of competitions staged at five to seven cities the first year. Those communities will include Jacksonville, Fla., Atlanta, Knoxville, Tenn., Asheville and Greensboro, N.C., and hopefully Spartanburg. Augusta also is a possibility.
All of the other host cities have secured dates and covered arenas to hold their events, according to Russell. Spartanburg, however, is still on the fence. Organizers are studying several possible locations for an arena in Spartanburg, but a possibility also exists that Spartanburg will not be able to host an event until a facility can be identified or constructed.
Thus, the County Council meeting could prove crucial.
City League’s first show season will begin in April at the Jacksonville Equestrian Center, a brand new facility built by the city. The teams will compete in three events over the course of a long weekend, which will culminate with a Saturday evening Grand Prix. Points will be accumulated individually as well as by each team.
City League is different than regular show jumping. Its mission is to develop a fan base in each community to cheer on the teams and fill arenas. Russell points to Europe, where he said show jumping is second only to soccer in popularity.
European coliseums, Russell says, are filled to capacity. The events feature fun-filled interludes of pony racing and terrier dog racing in between the main jumping events.
City League organizers, when they meet with the county council, also want to outline both the long-term and short-term economic impact of horse showing to the host community.
A horse show, they said, brings all types of people to a community, including the exhibitors, their families, grooms, spectators, show personnel and fans. Long-term growth in equine communities is quite impressive as well, they said. Areas such as Ocala, Fla., have burgeoned with growth of beautiful farms and retail equine businesses.
Spartanburg is being presented with a different, innovative form of competition and entertainment. What are your thoughts on bringing City League to this community?