{"id":868737,"date":"2025-08-28T23:14:41","date_gmt":"2025-08-29T04:14:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/28\/southern-hemispheres-largest-rodeo-returns-after-tumultuous-times\/"},"modified":"2025-08-28T23:14:41","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T04:14:41","slug":"southern-hemispheres-largest-rodeo-returns-after-tumultuous-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/28\/southern-hemispheres-largest-rodeo-returns-after-tumultuous-times\/","title":{"rendered":"Southern hemisphere’s largest rodeo returns after tumultuous times"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Red dust, huge crowds and raging bulls are back in action at Mount Isa Rodeo, and the outback legacy is here to stay.<\/p>\n

Almost 2,000 kilometres north-west of Brisbane, it’s not the outback city’s first rodeo.<\/p>\n

And thanks to a team of dedicated volunteers, it won’t be the last.<\/p>\n

“The vibes are electric, it’s the red dirt, it’s the people, it’s the feel of it all,” said committee member Ally Finlay.<\/p>\n

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The crowd was “electric” on Saturday night. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite being on the brink of collapse just months ago<\/a>, the largest and richest rodeo in the southern hemisphere made a comeback in front of a record crowd on the weekend.<\/p>\n

About 700 cowboys and cowgirls from all over Australia, New Zealand and America competed for a prize pool of almost $200,000 and coveted belt buckles.<\/p>\n

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Riders collect belt buckles as trophies at rodeos. (ABC North West Qld: Maddie Nixon\/Hannah Walsh<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Organisers said the goal was to bring the world-famous rodeo back to its roots, after the event fell into voluntary administration in September 2024.<\/p>\n

Administrators SV Partners revealed at least 83 creditors were owed $1.9 million, after ticket sales and competitor numbers plummeted at last year’s rodeo.<\/p>\n

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\"Seats<\/p>\n<\/div>

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About 7,000 people came through the gates on Saturday. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Former chair Rowena McNally told the ABC<\/a> at the time the board took full responsibility for putting the event’s future into doubt.<\/p>\n

In a bid to bring the rodeo back from the brink, the Queensland government injected an extra $2 million<\/a> into the Mount Isa Transition Fund.<\/p>\n

It meant the largest rodeo in the southern hemisphere continued into its 66th year.<\/p>\n

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Mount Isa’s event is the largest rodeo in the southern hemisphere. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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New Zealand youth riders kicked off the competition on Friday performing a traditional haka. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Women compete in break away roping, steer roping, barrel racing and bronc riding. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

“We were never going let it fail, we were going to do everything in our power to make it successful,” said chair of the Isa Rodeo Board Mark “Thomo” Thompson.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“We listened to the public and went back to basics.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Our biggest focus on this whole rodeo was to make it family affordable.<\/p>\n

“And that’s what we’ve done from the [get] go, we slashed gate prices to half.”<\/p>\n

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Rodeo can be a dangerous sport. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Support riders are on stand-by. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Cowboys compete to hold onto a bucking bull for 8 seconds, to win a coveted belt buckle. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Community determined to save event<\/h2>\n
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The Mount Isa Indigenous Rodeo is a standalone event at the coveted rodeo. (ABC North West Qld: Maddie Nixon<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the North West town of Mount Isa, the title of being the rodeo capital of Australia is not something locals take lightly.<\/p>\n

The Isa rodeo injects tens of millions of dollars into the local economy and is the heart of the outback town’s identity.<\/p>\n

Committee member and owner of Yelvertoft Station, near Camooweal, Marcus Curr said Mount Isa was not about to let the rodeo vanish.<\/p>\n

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Marcus Curr joined the new Mount Isa Rodeo 2025 committee. (ABC North West Qld: Hannah Walsh<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“We’ve had six months to get this together and everyone has worked very, very hard,” Mr Curr said.<\/p>\n

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“It feels unbelievable \u2026 to get the biggest rodeo in the southern hemisphere back on its wheels is unreal.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

Ms Finlay moved to Mount Isa this year and jumped on board the committee.<\/p>\n

“I’m really passionate about bringing rodeo in Australia back to life and making it just as big as in America,” she said.<\/p>\n

“Buchanan Park is one of the best rodeo arenas in the country.”<\/p>\n

International appeal<\/h2>\n

Despite the rodeo’s troubles, its international reputation has not wavered.<\/p>\n

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\"Cows<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Young riders came from the United States to get involved in the Mount Isa Rodeo action.\u00a0 (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The International Youth Rodeo Organisation brought young riders from the United States and New Zealand to outback Queensland to compete against Australia’s best.<\/p>\n

US delegate Diedra Hale was part of the event last year and said she was concerned when she heard it might not have been on the cards for 2025.<\/p>\n

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“We’re so thankful that it’s still going, we love this rodeo,”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

she said.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

“For them to see a rodeo of this magnitude and everything that it brings to the table is awe-inspiring for these kids that haven’t left the United States.”<\/p>\n

Mount Isa barrel racer Holly Bryant, 17, had just returned from competing in Oklahoma at the International Youth Rodeo Championship before taking up the Isa Rodeo challenge for a third time.<\/p>\n

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\"Young<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Holly Bryant has been competing in barrel racing for three years. (ABC Western Qld: Hannah Walsh<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“It’s good to be home,” she said.<\/p>\n

“I think the rodeo is vital to Mount Isa, it really gives it a name for itself and entices people to come here and see what we have.<\/p>\n

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“It’s not just a mining town in the middle of nowhere.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/p>\n<\/div>

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The outback city of Mount Isa has held its rodeo for 66 years. (Supplied: Mount Isa Pro Rodeo Ltd<\/span>)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Abbey Halter and Hannah Walsh
Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Red dust, huge crowds and raging bulls are back in action at Mount Isa Rodeo, and the outback legacy is here to stay. Almost 2,000 kilometres north-west of Brisbane, it’s not the outback city’s first rodeo. And thanks to a team of dedicated volunteers, it won’t be the last. “The vibes are electric, it’s the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":868738,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[145925,4917],"tags":[145924,5228],"class_list":{"0":"post-868737","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-hemispheres","8":"category-southern","9":"tag-hemispheres","10":"tag-southern"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/868737","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=868737"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/868737\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/868738"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=868737"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=868737"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=868737"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}