Harrisburg, Pennsylvania – September 06, 2018 – Olympic medalist Leslie Burr Howard and the late Jack Stedding, a renowned trainer, will be inducted into the Pennsylvania National Horse Show Hall of Fame at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show (PNHS). The special induction ceremony will take place on Saturday evening, October 20 prior to the start of the $132,000 Prix de Penn National Grand Prix, the horse show’s exciting final event which features Olympic and international riders. The 73^rd annual PNHS returns to the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, PA, October 11-20, 2018.

Induction into the PNHS Hall of Fame, which started in 2013, is an honor bestowed annually upon select individuals in recognition of their extraordinary efforts, commitment and dedication to excellence in horse showing and the Pennsylvania National Horse Show.

“We are delighted to welcome Leslie Burr Howard and Jack Stedding into the Pennsylvania National Horse Show Hall of Fame,” said Susie Webb, PNHS Executive Director. “Both are exemplary individuals in the sport of show jumping and also have a long-standing history with the Pennsylvania National Horse Show.”

Leslie Burr Howard

With a slew of grand prix victories and titles to her name, ‘Leapin Leslie’ has been a top rider, trainer, stable owner and competitor throughout her long career. She was a member of U. S. squads that won the team Gold Medal at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and the team Silver at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Leslie entered her first show at age 6, began training with George Morris at age 14, and won the 1972 ASPCA Maclay Finals at Madison Square Garden at age 15.

In 1983, Leslie was part of the Gold Medal winning U.S. team at the 1983 Pam American Games in Caracas, Venezuela with “Boing.” That year, she was honored as the American Grandprix Association (AGA) Rider of the Year, and her eventual Olympic mount “Albany” was Horse of the Year, a feat he repeated in 1984.

In 1986, she won the FEI World Cup™ Final in Gothenburg, Sweden on “McLain” and was voted the American Horse Shows Association’s (AHSA) Equestrian of the Year.  Over the course of her career Leslie has competed in 18 FEI World Cup™ Finals, and is one of only five female champions in the event’s 40-year history.

One of Leslie’s career highlights was being named to replace Greg Best as “Gem Twist’s” rider after Best sustained a broken shoulder in a fall while competing. She successfully completed the 1992 season, helping to earn the AGA Horse of the Year honors for “Gem Twist” for a record third time.

In 1994, Leslie represented the U.S. at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Holland. Also that year, she rode “Charisma” and “Gem Twist” to a first place tie in the USET Show Jumping Championship at the Bayer/USET Festival of Champions in Gladstone, NJ.

Leslie was honored by the USET in January of 1997 with the Whitney Stone Cup for long and meritorious service.  In 1999, she helped the USET win team Silver Medal at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada.  She topped the USA East Coast FEI World Cup League in 2000, and won the prestigious Queen Elizabeth II Cup in Calgary.  She also earned the Leading Rider Award at the Royal Horse Show in Toronto.  In 2002, she was part of the U.S. Team that competed at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Jerez, Spain.

In 2017, Leslie celebrated her 50^th consecutive year competing at the PA National Horse Show and was the Leading Open Jumper Rider in 2007. In October, 2015, Leslie won the $85,000 Grand Prix de Penn National aboard “Gentille Van Spieveld” – a victory that had eluded her for over three decades – and she was named Open Jumper Champion.

Jack Stedding

Jack Stedding was one of the top hunter professionals in the U.S. He spent most of his life as a trainer at various farms in Maryland and started some of this country’s best riders and finest horses. Jack was inducted into the Maryland Horse Shows Association Hall of Fame in 2000. He was also inducted into the Virginia Horse Shows Hall of Fame and the National Show Hunter Hall of Fame.

Born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1942, Jack learned to ride at his uncle’s stable. He began showing at age 7 and trained with William McKinley “Linky” Smith until he was 18.

His first professional stable was at Ruth Yeager’s Mayfair Farm in Timonium, Md., where he campaigned Yeager’s young Thoroughbred horses throughout the Mid-Atlantic and in Florida, establishing a reputation for himself as one of the country’s most up and coming trainers on the hunter circuit.

In 1967, Jack founded Jabolin Farm with his wife along with lifelong business partner Linda Andrisani, now a respected US Equestrian “R” judge as well as former rider and trainer. In 1980, the pair opened Monkton Manor in Monkton, Md., which became a well-known training facility.In 1992, Jack and Linda added a farm in Wellington, Florida, for the expanding winter show circuit.

In 2003, Stedding suffered a stroke and was no longer able to ride, but he continued to teach. In 2009, Stedding and Andrisani closed Monkton Mannor and moved to Mississippi for two years, but returned to Maryland in 2011 to work with Stephanie Moore in Reistertown, Md.

Among his students were Scott Evans, Nancy Falkner, Sandy Ferrell, Quentin Judge, Mary Lisa Leffler, Jennifer Marshall, Streett Moore, Elizabeth Solter and Tommy Serio.

Some of the champion horses that Jack helped develop include Cruisin’ The Coast, Legend Has It, Ruxton, Space Cowboy, Touch of Magic and Wintarra Ring. He also liked to work with Thoroughbreds and he bought horses off the track that he developed into winners.

Jack passed away on October 23, 2017, at age 75 after a long illness. He is survived by his son Jack W. Stedding, Jr., and Jack’s wife Josee.  Lifelong friend and business associate Linda Andrisani will be present at the PNHS to accept the Hall of Fame Award on Jack’s behalf.

Previous PNHS Hall of Fame inductees include:

• Gerry Hempt and Frank Chapot (2013)
• Irvin S. Naylor and Steve Stephens (2014)
• Mary “Polly” Gingrich Brand Caswell and Rodney Jenkins (2015)
• Mary Mairs Chapot and Harry Rittenhouse Gill (2016)
• Joe Fargis and John Sterling (2017).

The is a premier equestrian event attracting the nation’s top hunters and jumpers and features many of the top names in the sport. During the ten days of national competition, 1,400 qualified Junior and Adult competitors from the U.S. and abroad vie for more than $500,000 in prize money and eight national championships – including the prestigious Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final, and the Neue Schule/USEF National Junior Jumper Individual and Team Championships. “Junior Weekend” takes place October 11-14, followed by “Adult Week” October 15-20, culminating in the $132,000 Prix de Penn National Grand Prix.

About The Pennsylvania National Horse Show Foundation

The Pennsylvania National Horse Show Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit organization, provides support for therapeutic riding and equine rescue programs. The Foundation makes grants exclusively for charitable and educational purposes to acquaint, teach and train the public in therapeutic equestrian endeavors and to support equine rescue efforts. Proceeds from the show benefit the Foundation. 

For more information, updates, promotions, vendor information, tickets, and more, please visit www.PANational.org or call (717) 770-0222.