Rosanne Demascio and her Border Collie, MACH All Zet Air Attack Strafe MXB MXJ “Strafe” have been selected to represent the American Kennel Club in the prestigious International Agility Competition during the Crufts Dog Show in Birmingham, England. The pair will compete against 25 teams from countries around the world.
Rosanne and Strafe were selected based on their recent past performances on the national and international stages. They represented AKC/USA at Crufts in 2014, winning the International Agility Round their first time in the ring. The pair were AKC National Agility Championship Challenger Round Participants in 2013, 2014, and 2015, winning the round and becoming a National Finalist in 2014.
They were also participants at AKC World Team Tryouts 2013, 2014, and 2015, winning a spot on the European Open Team all three years. They were Finalists at the European Open in both 2013 and 2014, placing 2nd and 8th respectively. They won a spot on the Agility World Team in 2014 and 2015, placing 9th overall individually and earning a bronze medal in Team Agility in 2015.
“It’s an honor for the United States to be represented at Crufts,” said Carrie DeYoung, AKC’s Director of Agility. “It takes a lot of hard work and determination to make it this far and with Rosanne and Strafe’s long record of success, we’re confident that our team will make us proud. We wish them the best of luck.”
Crufts, which takes place on March 10-13, 2016 in Birmingham, England at the National Exhibition Centre, is considered the birthplace of dog agility, and is the largest dog show in the world. Hundreds of thousands of people attend each year’s show, with many packing the main Arena to watch the Agility competition. For more about Crufts, visit http://www.crufts.org.uk/.
The pair were chosen based on their recent past performances on the national and international stages.