Making History: Five-Gaited World's Championship Purse Rises to $200,000

The Kentucky State Fair is pleased to announce that the purse for the 2026 Five-Gaited World's Championship class will be $200,000; it is the largest in Saddlebred history.

The following sponsors have contributed to make this possible:

• Barbara Goodman Manilow and her late father, Charles Goodman, who sponsored this class for many years, with Barbara continuing her support;
• William Blacklaw, through the Barbara Blacklaw Memorial Fund he created;
• The late Helen Rich and her daughter, Ali DeGray; and
• Scott Hagan.

The Kentucky State Fair appreciates the continued support of all these sponsors in making this record payout possible.

The 2026 World's Championship Horse Show is the largest on record, with 1,867 entries. A total of 3,100 stalls will be located in the barns and in 11 tents. Tents will be placed north of the make-up ring, where they were located two years ago, with the remaining tents next to Barns A, P and U.