Caleb Smidt, of Bellville, Texas, ropes a calf during semi-final rodeo action at the Calgary Stampede in Calgary, Alta., on July 14, 2019.Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
Caleb Smidt took on and beat three former champions to win $100,000 on Showdown Sunday at the Calgary Stampede rodeo.
Smidt, from Bellville, Tex., won the tie-down roping title with a time of 7.3 seconds to edge out 2010 Stampede champion Matt Shiozawa, of Chubbock, Idaho, by three-10ths of a second.
Cody Solomon of Prairie View, Tex. – who won a pair of titles in Calgary in 2012 and 2017 – finished third, while 2015 champ Timber Moore of Aubrey, Tex., placed fourth.
Ten competitors in each of the six events qualified to compete on Sunday and only the top four from the first go-round advanced to the finals. The winner of each event was awarded $100,000, while the second-place finisher took home $25,000. Third and fourth spots paid out $15,000 and $10,000 respectively.
Sage Kimzey of Strong City, Okla., won his third bull riding title at the Stampede thanks to his 92.5-point ride atop Night Moves. Kimzey first won in Calgary in 2015 and then added his second championship two years later when he also rode Night Moves to victory. Jared Parsonage of Maple Creek, Sask., finished second thanks to his 89-point ride aboard Grey Tower III to win $25,000.
Lisa Lockhart of Oelrichs, S.D., edged out Hailey Kinsel of Cotulla, Tex., to win the women’s barrel racing finals by three-1000ths of a second. Lockhart, who also won the event back in 2015, posted a time of 17.116 seconds before Kinsel stopped the clock in 17.119 to narrowly miss out on defending her Stampede title.
Rusty Wright of Milford, Utah, finished first in the saddle bronc event by virtue of his impressive 92-point ride atop Get Smart. Wright’s younger brother Ryder, who was the defending champion, finished in a tie for second spot with Zeke Thurston of Big Valley, Alta., who won three straight Stampede titles from 2015 to 2017.
Thanks to his 92.5-point ride atop Yipee Kibitz, Tanner Aus of Granite Falls, Minn., won his first Stampede title in the bareback event. Aus edged out 2013 champ Caleb Bennett of Tremonton, Utah, by just one point to finish first.
Kyle Irwin of Robertsdale, Ala., won his first steer wrestling title in Calgary by recording the top time of 3.8 seconds. Although 2017 champion, Tyler Waguespack of Gonzales, La., stopped the clock in 3.4 seconds, he was assessed a 10-second penalty for breaking the barrier and wound up in fourth place behind Jacob Talley of Keatchie, La., and Will Lummus of West Point, Miss.
Matt Reeves of Cross Plains, Tex., won his first steer wrestling title in Calgary by recording the top time of 4.7 seconds. Last year’s champion, Tyler Waguespack of Gonzales, La., posted a time of 6.7 seconds to finish second.