The Ohio State Fair Opens in One Week

Did you know any 4-H/FFA youth can participate in the State Fair Skillathon? Skillathons are events for youth to show what they know about a species and to be recognized for their knowledge and skills. All Skillathons are open to any Ohio 4-H member, age 8 and in the 3rd grade, or 9 years old and older regardless of grade level, to age 18 as of January 1, 2023, and FFA members. Youth do not have to be an exhibitor at the Ohio State Fair to participate or be enrolled in an animal project. Want more information? Click here!

• 2023 Ohio State Fair Skillathon Rules
• NEW: (OBE) Breeding Skillathons will be held during the youth livestock shows at the Ohio State Fair for Beef, Goat, Sheep, and Swine.
  • Note: To be eligible for the Ohio State Fair Outstanding Breeding Exhibitor, youth MUST compete in their species OBE Skillathon
• In-person Skillathons will be held during the youth livestock shows at the Ohio State Fair
  • Note: To be eligible for the Ohio State Fair Outstanding Market Exhibitor, youth MUST compete in their species in-person Skillathon
• There will be 4 stations in each Skillathon that will make up 4 separate, timed modules.
• Each station will have a time limit (typically 5 minutes per station).
• If your child requires any testing accommodations, please contact us in advance at 4hanimalscience@osu.edu and we will work with you to make accommodation arrangements.
• Results will be posted for each age category, age division, and overall after the Skillathon is completed.

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Beef Skillathons:

(OBE) Breeding Beef Skillathon: Monday, July 24 & Friday, July 28, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm, Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor)

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Breeding Exhibitor, youth MUST compete in the OBE Skillathon
• The Beef OBE Skillathon is only open to beef-breeding exhibitors. 

In-Person: Thursday, August 3, 2:00 pm – 6:00 pm, Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor)

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Market Exhibitor, youth MUST compete at the in-person Beef Skillathon

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Dairy Cattle Skillathons:

In-Person: Tuesday, August 1^st, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm, Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor)

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Dog Skillathons:

In-Person: Tuesday, July 18^th, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm, Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor)

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Goat Skillathons:

(OBE) Breeding Goat Skillathon: Tuesday, July 18, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm, O’Neill Swine Barn

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Breeding Exhibitor, youth MUST compete in the OBE Skillathon
• The Goat OBE Skillathon is only open to goat-breeding exhibitors. 

In-Person: Friday, July 21, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm, Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor)

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Market Exhibitor, youth MUST compete at the in-person Goat Skillathon

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Horse Skillathons:

In-Person: Monday, July 17, 8:00 am – 12:00 pm, Voinovich Livestock Center Mezzanine (2nd floor)

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Poultry Skillathons:

In-Person: Wednesday, August 2, 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm, Rabbit & Poultry Pavilion

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Market Exhibitor, youth MUST compete at the in-person Poultry Skillathon

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Rabbit Skillathons:

In-Person: Friday, August 4, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm, Rabbit & Poultry Pavilion

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Sheep Skillathons:

(OBE) Breeding Sheep Skillathon: Monday, July 31 & Wednesday, August 2^nd, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm, Brown Sheep Building

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Breeding Exhibitor, youth MUST compete in the OBE Skillathon
• The Sheep OBE Skillathon is only open to sheep-breeding exhibitors. 

In-Person: Tuesday, July 25, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm, Brown Sheep Building

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Market Exhibitor, youth MUST compete at the in-person Sheep Skillathon

Ohio State Fair IN-PERSON Swine Skillathons:

(OBE) Breeding Swine Skillathon: Friday, July 28, 8:00 am – 1:00 pm, O’Neill Swine Barn

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Breeding Exhibitor, youth MUST compete in the OBE Skillathon
• The Swine OBE skillathon is only open to swine-breeding exhibitors. 

In-Person: Thursday, August 3, 8:00 am – 1:00 pm, O’Neill Swine Barn

• Note: To be eligible for Outstanding Market Exhibitor, youth MUST compete at the in-person Swine Skillathon

By participating in an Ohio State Fair Skillathon, this will meet the Skillathon requirement for 4-H and FFA youth to exhibit at the 2023 Fairfield County Junior Fair. As a reminder, Skillathons will continue in 2023 as a required portion of project completion for livestock projects. Fairfield County Skillathons will be offered for all beef, dairy, goat, poultry, rabbit (except Pet Rabbits), sheep, swine, dog, horse, alpaca/llama projects. Skillathons may include (but are not limited to) animal anatomy/body parts, breeding and reproduction, feeds and nutrition, current events, diseases and animal health, equipment ID, feed ID, Quality Assurance, breeds, marketing, meats, and recordkeeping. Skillathons are required for those who wish to exhibit at the 2023 Fairfield County Junior Fair. Youth must complete at least one Skillathon. Youth can participate in more than one species if they intend to participate in the Premier Exhibitor for that respective species. For more information: Refer to Junior Fair Book. Fairfield County Skillathons will be held on September 9th and 24th at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds.