The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo announced the cancellation of its 2021 rodeo in a news release Feb. 3. The cancellation comes amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and rescheduling announcement in December of moving the rodeo to May 4-23, according to the release.
While the rodeo competitions, concerts and entertainment, carnival and other attractions are canceled for the 2021 season, the Junior Livestock and Horse Show competitions will be held in March as private events following state and local health and safety guidelines, according to the release. The Junior Market Auctions and Champion Wine Auction will also be held as private events in May.
“While we were optimistic that moving our rodeo to May would provide a better opportunity to host our annual community event that rodeo fans have come to love and expect, unfortunately, it has become evident that the current health situation has not improved to the degree necessary to host our event,” said Chris Boleman, the president and CEO of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, in the release. “While this is an extremely heartbreaking decision for our rodeo volunteers and the larger rodeo community, we believe this decision is in the best interest of the health and well-being of our community.”
Rodeo-related activities included in the cancellation include the Downtown Rodeo Parade, Trail Ride activities, Rodeo Uncorked! Roundup & Best Bites Competition and the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest, according to the release. Details will be announced at a later date regarding The Rodeo Run, which will be presented in a virtual format.
