The Cinch World Championship Junior Rodeo is taking place July 23–27, in Guthrie, Oklahoma, meaning there is less than a week for breakaway ropers to finalize their entries into the event that’s slated to pay out more than $200,000 in 2024.
To keep all the information straight and easily accessible, we’ve assembled some bite-size information about the 2024 WCJR and why youth athletes need to take advantage.
Table of contents
Entering vs. Qualifying for WCRJ
There are three ways to participate in the 2024 WCJR. Competitors can either:
- Qualify via the WCRA DY Leaderboards
- Qualify via a DY Qualifier Series Event
- Or flat-out enter the 2024 WCJR
*Note: There are two divisions at the WCJR:
- Junior Classification: 19–16 years old
- Youth Classification: 13–15 years old
- *Youth athletes can opt out of the Youth Division and enter up into the Junior
Why is qualifying worth it?
A main perk of a WCRA DY24 Leaderboard qualification is an automatic seed into the Semi-Finals and paid entry fee. Athletes can nominate their rodeo efforts using the Virtual Rodeo Qualifier (VRQ) system until Sunday, June 23, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. The top 16 on the leaderboard will qualify.
Didn’t qualify via the leaderboard? Still nominate!
All entered athletes who have a minimum of 15 VRQ points will be eligible to earn Event World Points toward the WCRA DY World Champion Leaderboard.
So, even if an athlete didn’t earn enough points to earn a qualification into the WCJR, it’s worth having some points in their pocket to be eligible for the cash bonuses.
World Champions will be crowned in all disciplines along with All-Around World Champions from both the 19-and-under Junior Leaderboard and the 13-15 Youth Leaderboard. Each World Champion will be awarded a piece of the $56,000 in cash bonuses.
What’s up for grabs at the WCJR?
The 2023 Payout was $407,000, and the 2024 World Championship Junior Rodeo will have over $200,000 in prize money (including bonus payouts).
World Champions will be crowned in all disciplines from both the Junior Leaderboard and the Youth Leaderboard with $10,000 added per discipline in the Junior Division, while the Youth Division will have $5,000 added per discipline.
How can I enter?
At this point, only late entries are being taken for the 2024 Cinch WCJR. Entry fees are $350 per entry in the Junior Division and $250 per entry in the Youth Division. Late fees will apply to entries.
2024 Cinch WCJR Format
This information is pulled from the ground rules, which can be found HERE.
- COMPETITION FORMAT:
- Qualifying Rounds – all disciplines – 2 Rounds
- Buy Back Round – all disciplines – 1 Round – any athlete that did not advance from the Qualifying Rounds will be eligible to enter the Buy Back Round for $100 per entry.
- Semi-Final Round – all disciplines – 1 Round (clean slate, no previous times advance except for tie breakers)
- Championship Round – 1 Round (clean slate no previous times advance except for tie breakers) – 9 athletes.
- ADVANCEMENT TO SUBSEQUENT ROUNDS:
- Advancement from Qualifying Rounds to Semi-Final Round:
▪ All Disciplines – Qualifying Round 1 Top 3 Fastest Times/Highest Scores, Qualifying Round 2 Top 3 Fastest Times/Highest Scores, Top 8 from Qualifying Rounds 2 head Aggregate
▪ Advancement from Buy Back Round to Semi-Final Round: Top 2 Fastest Times/Highest Scores
▪ Advancement from Semi-Final Round to Championship Round: Top 8 Fastest Times/Highest Scores.
- Advancement from Qualifying Rounds to Semi-Final Round:
2024 Cinch WCJR Advancement Chart
2024 Cinch WCJR Preview 👀
Ahead of the 2024 WCJR in Guthrie, Oklahoma, the organization announced the roster highlighted by nearly 900 entries.
In a highly competitive leaderboard race, two breakaway athletes have risen to the No. 1 position on the all-around rankings. Junior competitor Rylie Edens (Hillsboro, Texas) has distanced herself from the rest of the Junior field by more than 2,000 points, while Youth Drew Ellen Stewart (Normangee, Texas) will begin the event leading her peers in the All-Around by 3,000 points. Junior All-Around World Champions will earn a $4,000 bonus, while each Youth All-Around World Champion will take home $2000 each.
Edens finds herself in one of the top spots on the Junior Leaderboard in Breakaway Roping and Pole Bending. She ranks second in breakaway roping, taking the position by nearly 12,000 points. Entering the event as her first year as a Junior, she tops the rankings with over 20,600 all-around points.
Competing in four disciplines (Pole Bending, Goat Tying, Breakaway Roping, Barrel Racing), Stewart goes into the world championship in the Youth Division, ahead of fellow Breakaway Roper and Goat Tyer Allie Calcote (Sugartown, Louisianan) by less than 3,000 points.
Athletes entered at the WCJR are eligible to earn Elevated Bonus Event World Points (4X multiplier). They will automatically be eligible to earn Event World Points without a nomination for any disciplines at the event. All WCJR point information can be found here.
According to WCRA President Bobby Mote, there are 6,900 points available. The Qualifying Rounds have 800 points available for a round win. The round champions in the Semi-Finals can earn up to 1200 points and 2700 points in the championship round.