4-H and FFA youth can show what they know about 9 different animal species through 10 skillathon events during the Ohio State Fair (see the schedule below). Skillathons are free, registration is the day of the event (an adult must accompany the youth), youth can come anytime between the hours listed, and youth do not have to be a state fair exhibitor or be enrolled in an animal project in order to complete. Youth vying for the Outstanding Market Exhibitor (OME) award for goat, sheep, poultry, swine, and beef must participate in the Skillathon, showmanship, and live animal show in order to qualify. Rules, study resources (including the station topics for each species), and other information are available at: go.osu.edu/osfskillathons
Helpful background information:
- We implemented a new scoring process last year, which will require a youth or an adult representative to bubble in a youth’s name on a scantron sheet. Additionally, we will still collect information such as birthdate, address, and county of enrollment on a separate piece of paper.
- A responsible adult MUST accompany the youth to registration and sign the youth’s registration form in person before the youth can participate. The signature is to verify the youth’s birthdate and age.
| WE, 7/17 from 10am-3pm | HORSE SKILLATHON | Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor) |
| FR, 7/19 from 12-5pm | GOAT SKILLATHON | Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor) |
| TU, 7/23 from 9am-2pm | SHEEP SKILLATHON | Brown Arena Wool Room |
| TH, 7/25 from 3-6:30pm | DAIRY SKILLATHON 1 | Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor) |
| TU, 7/30 from 9am-3pm | DOG SKILLATHON | Buckeye Sports Center (north end) |
| WE, 7/31 from 1:30-5pm | DAIRY SKILLATHON 2 | Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor) |
| WE, 7/31 from 4-7:30pm | POULTRY SKILLATHON | Rabbit/Poultry Pavilion |
| TH, 8/1 from 8am-1pm | SWINE SKILLATHON | Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor) |
| TH, 8/2 from 4-7pm | BEEF SKILLATHON | Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor) |
| FR, 8/2 from 8am-12pm | RABBIT SKILLATHON | Rabbit/Poultry Pavilion |
Please direct questions to Lizz Share at 614-292-0589 or share.8@osu.edu