Photo of Whoop-Days Pro Rodeo Bull Riding / Photo by Keith Driver
Lethbridge’s biggest summer fair saw record numbers set over the weeklong celebration of western culture and heritage.
Whoop-Up Days and the Lethbridge & District Pro Rodeo saw nearly 55 thousand people at the annual summer fair, which is a 37 per cent increase from 2024.
2025 marked the fourth year of partnership between the Siksikaitsitapi Blackfoot Confederacy and Lethbridge and District Exhibition, and that partnership paid off with well over one thousand people attending the Princess Pageant and Powwow.
During Whoop-Up Days, the Powwow saw all its drum groups being of the Blackfoot Prairie First Nation drum style, which is something Siksikaitsiapi Powwow community member Kirby Smith said was a good way to involve multiple generations at the annual celebration.
The highest attended event and one with the highest attendance was the Pro Rodeo, which saw just over nine thousand people attend, with Saturday, August 23, being the highest attended day, with 3,582 rodeo goers filling the Grandstand.
The rodeo included some of the best in Canadian Professional Rodeo and Indian Relay, taking centre stage, giving a spectacle each night while introducing many to western culture, which is something Miss Rodeo Canada 2025 Codi Wilson says is her favorite part of any rodeo.
Organizers of the summer fair said they are already looking at how they can improve the experience for next year, as 2026 will mark the fifth year of partnership with the Siksikaitsitapi Blackfoot Confederacy, which this year sponsored various Indigenous artists taking the community and Original 16 stage.
Comments