The 50th World Dairy Expo kicked off on Tuesday, October 4 with an Opening Ceremony that included a surprise reveal at the Alliant Energy Center.
The ceremony served as a platform to welcome the first of Expo attendees to Madison and to unveil a 50th Anniversary gift from World Dairy Expo (WDE).
The gift, a 6,900-pound cow carved from Dakota Mahogany stone, has a permanent home outside the northeast corner of New Holland Pavilion 1. Named Miss Madison, the cow stood covered throughout the ceremony before being welcomed to the grounds in Madison by a crowd of onlookers.
“In celebration of World Dairy Expo’s Golden Anniversary, we are pleased to share a new gift – a gift we hope will become an Expo icon for the next 50 years and beyond,” WDE President Al Deming told those in attendance. “This masterpiece – a compilation of the seven breeds exhibited at World Dairy Expo – represents Expo’s storied past and exciting future.”
World Dairy Expo commissioned Quarra Stone Company, a local Madison business, to construct Miss Madison from a 47,000-pound block of stone. The gift is reminiscent of the first World Dairy Expo in 1967 when the iconic globe was gifted to the Alliant Energy Center.
In other WDE news, the University of Minnesota captured back-to-back top honors Monday, October 3 at World Dairy Expo with first place overall team and second team in reasons in the National Intercollegiate Dairy Cattle Contest.
Overall Top 10 Teams in the National Intercollegiate Dairy Cattle Contest:
University of Minnesota, 2,510, coached by Dr. Les Hansen, Scott Ellinghuysen, Alicia Thurk
Team members: Crystal Siemers-Peterman, Ethan Dado, Dane Thompson, Gabriella Sorg
UW-Madison, 2,508, coached by Chad Wethal and Brian Kelroy
Team members: Elizabeth Endres, Sara Harn, Brad Warmka, Andy Sell
Cornell University, 2,504, coached by Kevin Ziemba
Team members: Andrew Chlus, Logan Martin, Cooper Galton, and Miquela Hanselman
Iowa State University, 2,490, coached by Christen Burgett
Team members: Karla Hagman, Jennifer Huhe, Maria Schmitt, Cassidy Buddenber
Penn State University, 2,478, coached by Dale Olver
Team members: Sabrina Clark, Laura Lesher, Austin Milligan, Cara Totter
UW-River Falls, 2,477, coached by Steven Kelm
Team members: Tim Abrahamson, Valerie Kramer, Trent Miller, Emily Pieper
Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, 2,456, coached by Rich Silacci and Stan Henderson
Team members: Amber LaSalle, Caitlin Lopes, Matt Ruby, Tony Lopes
Virginia Tech, 2,418, coached by Katharine Knowlton and Michael Barnes
Team members: Nicole Hardy, Zack Seeford, Cara Woloohojian, Carly Shaw
Oklahoma State University, 2,418, coached by David Jones
Team members: LeeAnne VanderLaan, Taylor Leach, Connie Jones, Gerrett Boer
Purdue University, 2,408, coached by Annie Achen
Team members: Rachel Stohlman, Kendra Arnholt, Mary Grace Erikson
Recognized as the meeting place for the global dairy industry, World Dairy Expo attracts more than 70,000 attendees from over 90 countries to Madison, Wis. each year. The annual event will take place October 4–8, 2016, with the theme of “Celebrate 50!” to commemorate its golden anniversary.
Source – The Dairy Site