Washington, DC - The Washington International Horse Show (WIHS), taking place October 21 - 26 at the MCI Center in Washington, DC, has announced that it will hold an Art Contest for children ages 3 - 15. The Art Contest is presented by the KidsPost page of the Washington Post.

Children are encouraged to draw the horse or pony of their dreams as the theme for the artwork. Three age groups:
3 - 5, 6 - 10, and 11 - 15 will be judged. The winner of each age group will receive a semester of FREE riding lessons courtesy of Rock Creek Park Horse Center in Washington, DC, as well as a new riding hat and new riding boots, courtesy of The Saddlery in Great Falls.

McLain Ward, three-time Puissance winner, will judge the contest. The winners will be chosen from all of the submitted artwork and will be announced during the Saturday evening performance. The top contestants who are present at the Saturday evening performance will be recognized and will have their photos taken with McLain Ward. Contestants do not have to be present to win.

Selected entries will be displayed throughout the MCI Center.

Rules for contest:

* Draw the horse or pony of your dreams on an 8 ½" x 11" sheet of white paper.

* On back of entry, please include: name, age, address, phone, and email address. Please print clearly.

* One entry per person. All entries become the property of the WIHS and will not be returned.

To submit entries:

* At WIHS (Oct. 21 - 25 - ticket needed to enter MCI Center) - take artwork to the WIHS Souvenir Booth located outside seating section 115 on the main concourse. Entries submitted at the WIHS must be received no later than 8:00pm on Saturday, October 25, 2003.

* To mail entries - send artwork to: Art Contest, Washington International Horse Show, 16063 Comprint Circle, Gaithersburg, MD 20877. Mailed artwork must be received in the WIHS office before October 17, 2003.

Over 2,000 entries were received for last year's art contest, with Dylan Linehan winning the 11 - 15 age group and Sophie Montgomery winning the 6 - 10 age group. Both winners were awarded prizes by judge and Olympic show jumper, Margie Engle, during the Saturday evening performance.

Visit www.wihs.org for more information.