The Kentucky State Fair, celebrating its 121st year, attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors annually, offering a wide range of attractions from rides to food. A major highlight is the World’s Championship Horse Show (WCHS), which is one year older than the fair and significantly boosts the event’s economic impact. The prestigious horse show draws around 20,000 attendees and features 2,000 Saddlebreds competing for internationally recognized titles, with participants traveling from places as far as Canada and South Africa. The WCHS alone contributes approximately $6 million to the fair’s total estimated $15 million economic impact.

Beyond direct revenue, the fair also stimulates the local economy through ancillary activities such as landscaping, labor, and the use of Kentucky products, extending its economic influence throughout the Commonwealth. Trainers like Fay Lowry emphasize the show’s importance, noting the rigorous qualifications required and the high value placed on even minor placements. Overall, the horse show industry leaves a significant, though sometimes unseen, imprint on Kentucky’s economy and cultural prestige.