Boisjoli-Meged Grabs Calgary Stampede Breakaway Roping Champ Title
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By Ava Tremblay
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Summary:
- Shelby Boisjoli-Meged has won the first-ever breakaway roping title at the Calgary Stampede.
- Zeke Thurston and Scott Guenthner also grabbed home championship buckles in saddle bronc and steer wrestling.
- Other winners include Shad Mayfield, Cooper Cooke, and Anita Ellis.
Shelby Boisjoli-Meged etched her name in Calgary Stampede history on Sunday as the first-ever breakaway roping champion at the iconic rodeo.
The Alberta native was one of three local athletes to claim titles on Showdown Sunday, capping what she called “the biggest week I’ve ever had in my life”.
“It’s been a crazy 24 hours”, said Boisjoli-Meged, who also won the NFR Open at the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo in Colorado Springs the night before. “I’ve been extremely blessed. It’s unbelievable.”
She set the pace early in the final with a lightning-fast 2.2-second run, a mark her competitors couldn’t touch after both drew penalties for breaking the barrier.
“Having my family all here watching me, it’s the best feeling in the world”, she said. Her husband, Haven Meged, the 2023 Calgary tie-down champion, couldn’t compete this year due to injury, but she added, “Getting the win and having him here in the box with me was awesome”.
Thurston and Guenthner Repeated as Stampede Champs
Zeke Thurston of Big Valley continued his own Stampede legacy, winning his fourth saddle bronc title. Riding the storied horse Virgil, Thurston scored 92.5 points to edge out fellow Albertan Dawson Hay.
My hat’s off to that horse That’s a once in a lifetime kind of animal… you really cherish those moments.
Hay celebrated his 28th birthday on Sunday with a second-place finish at the end of a 90-point ride.
Steer wrestler Scott Guenthner also backed up his 2023 Stampede win with a 3.7-second run to top Will Lummus of Mississippi. Earlier, Guenthner accepted the prestigious Guy Weadick Award for embodying the cowboy spirit.
It’s still surreal. To win Calgary and then on top of it to win that award, it’s such an honour.
Other Winners of the Day
Other champions crowned Sunday included Shad Mayfield, who took tie-down roping in 6.8 seconds, saying,
It’s so special to win this rodeo especially because my dad won it 40 years ago.
In bareback, Cooper Cooke posted a 94-point ride to claim his first Stampede buckle.
That’s probably the most meaningful win I’ve ever had, especially because my family was there to watch it
Anita Ellis won barrel racing, Wacey Schalla rode the only qualifying bull for the title, and Calgary’s own Chanse Vigen took home his first Rangeland Derby chuckwagon crown.
For all the winners, the $50,000 prize and the roar of the Calgary Stampede crowd made it a day to remember.
