The Future Of Women's Rodeo With Linsay Rosser Sumpter

Linsay Rosser Sumpter is the commissioner of Women's Rodeo World Championship, the largest all-female rodeo in the world, with $750,000 added, for female athletes only. We had the pleasure of catching up with her in Vegas to talk about the future of WRWC and how exciting it is to be a woman in rodeo.

"It's exciting to be here to celebrate ladies because that is what Women's Rodeo World Championship is all about. Our biggest goal is to have inclusivity and equity across the board for female athletes. It doesn't matter if you're a team roper, breakaway roper, barrel racer, we want to make sure at Women's Rodeo World Championship that you have the highest opportunity at equal money in every event."

For Linsay, seeing the massive expansion of opportunities for women in rodeo is "a long time coming." Growing up in the rodeo business and being immersed in the lifestyle her whole life, she has seen the changing dynamic firsthand. "My grandfather was a stock contractor in the PRCA for 75 years. So I grew up where women in the industry were trick riders, they were secretaries, they were timers, and they were barrel racers. And that is pretty much what the job titles within the rodeo industry were."

Fast forward, she was a college rodeo athlete at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. When she was done with college, she felt her rodeo career was pretty much over. "I loved running barrels. I ran barrels at the pro rodeos, but really my my heart lived in roping. I love to rope; team rope, head, heel, and breakaway."

"In 2019, I made the short round at Cheyenne Frontier Days, and that was the first time that they had breakaway roping at Cheyenne. The growth from 2019 to 2023, to see these ladies compete for a great amount of money, to be able to be part of a rodeo that adds $750,000 to female rodeo athletes alone, it's a huge honor for me. I just think the trajectory of rodeo for ladies in the industry and in the sport is just gonna grow from here." 

A team of strong women are behind operations at WRWC – something Linsay is very proud of as commissioner. "Sami Jo Smith is our Director of Operations and Athletes. She is basically the glue that holds everything together and keeps us grounded. Then we have the amazing Kaitlin Gustave with us who runs our marketing and social media. On top of that team, we have all of the team at the World Champion Rodeo Alliance, the WCRA, and all of our partners with the PBR, the Professional Bull Riders."

Starting in 2024, the WRWC Champions will be crowned at AT&T Stadium alongside the 2024 PBR World Finals Championship. Linsay says, "It's just gonna be so exciting in that atmosphere and the electricity that's gonna be in that building to watch the barrel racers, team ropers, and the breakaway ropers. It's gonna be pretty awesome to see the cowgirls take over."