The 78th Annual Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration came to an end on Saturday, September 3rd with the crowning of Honors and Larry Edwards as the World Grand Champion. The 2016 Celebration showed strong growth with a 9% increase in entries versus the previous year. In 2015, there were 2,235 entries made. That number grew to 2,440 this year, an increase of 205 entries.

Even more important, the number of horses that came in the show ring showed impressive growth. Through Friday night’s performance, the number of horses through the gate was 1,547 versus 1,359 in 2015, a 14% increase. The 188 additional horses in the ring signal a positive sign for the industry. Celebration CEO Mike Inman addressed the crowd of almost 15,000 while the horses were in the lineup in the last class and informed the patrons that the 188 had grown to 250 additional horses in the ring through the end of the show.