SHAWNEE, Okla. (KFOR) - The brightest youth rodeo stars are in Shawnee, Oklahoma competing for one of the most prosperous and prestigious youth titles in the International Finals Youth Rodeo (IFYR).
Attendee can expect cowgirls barrel racing, cowgirls pole bending, cowgirls breakaway roping, cowgirls goat tying, team roping, tie-down roping, steer wrestling, bull riding, saddle bronc riding, and bareback riding.
The IFYR first round has neared its close with quick times and impressive scores with competition beginning on Sunday, July 7 and concluding Friday, July 12 with the finals performance at 7:30 p.m.
Rodeo officials confirm, there will be two performances a day with all disciplines, Monday through Friday, at 9 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.
The latest event and winners are as follows:
In barrel racing, home-state cowgirl DJ Birdsong (Claremore, Okla.) laid down a lightning-quick run of 16.125 seconds, the fastest time of the rodeo thus far.
Pole bending winner Camree Slavin (Canadian, Texas) with a quick 20.828-second run.
Channing Wescott (Denton, Texas) turned heads in the breakaway roping arena, becoming the quickest cowgirl thus far. With a 1.8-second run, she leads the competitive pack of ropers by a margin of 0.1 seconds.
In goat tying, Lone Star State cowgirl Alli Autrey (Anson, Texas) became the first to crack the 7-second barrier with a smoking 6.7-second run.
Performance 4 saw many lead changes, including a round-leading tie in calf roping from Cort Boyd (Centerville, Texas). Boyd is currently tied for the lead in the round with Brodey Clemons (Weatherford, Texas) after his 8.4-second performance.
With a smooth 4.3-second run, Sooner State cowboy Nathan Duvall (Henryetta, Okla.) laid down the quickest steer wrestling run of Performance 4.
In saddle bronc riding, Cajun cowboy Wyatt Lavergne (Sulphur, La.) made it to the 8-second mark in style with a 79.0-point ride.
In bareback riding, Collin Rolland (Childersburg, Ala.) taking home the highest marked ride of the performance with a 72.0-point score.
Team ropers Cason Richey (Sunset, Texas) and Beldon Cox (Weatherford, Texas) laid down the quickest run with a smooth 5.1-second run.
There were no qualified rides in the bull riding according to Rodeo officials.
The rodeo action is set to continue with Performance 5 taking place at 7:30 p.m. at the Heart of Oklahoma Expo Center, and will continue through the evening of July 12.
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