Hay, Junee young women bound for Sydney Royal

About 200 people were in attendance on the night to see two winners selected to attend the state final at Sydney Royal.

Going through to the finals from Zone 7 were Emma Johnstone of Hay and Olivia Hodgkin of Junee.

Emma is a well-known face in Hay and an original member of the Hay Youth Task Force, which aims to give Hay's kids new experiences and more opportunities.

She is also a board member for the Hay Show Society, volunteers at Hay's pre-schools, and coaches an under-14s netball team in between helping out with her local show.

Emma will be attending university in Sydney this year to study secondary teaching and fine arts; when she is qualified she wants to return to Hay or another rural area to teach and inspire rural kids.

Emma said being selected to go to Sydney was "pretty amazing, and I look forward to meeting the other zone winners and getting lots of new experiences from Sydney".

She also thanked the ASC for the opportunity.

Junee's winner, Olivia Hodgkin, has completed her Veterinary Nursing Cert IV, and her Bachelor of Veterinary Technology and is currently studying a dual Bachelor of Veterinary Biology and Veterinary Science degree.

In her spare time, she teaches piano and helps with events on campus for the Vet Science Association.

Olivia wants to use her knowledge to improve vet care across the country to allow vets greater efficiencies, so they have more time to provide care for animals.

She hopes to travel the country as a locum around Australia, helping out in rural and remote communities.

"I want to thank the Junee Show Society. They have always been a wonderful support and expressed how proud they are of me," Olivia said.

"I am so excited to be going to Sydney; it will be the experience of a lifetime, and the networking will be a massive benefit to my future development."

Judging was difficult, with Zone 7 fielding a number of impressive entrants, any of whom would have made great ambassadors for their regions.

The young women presented a wide range of interests and hobbies, from engineering and architecture to vet science and volunteer work within their communities.

Many of them are currently attending or about to start university with plans to bring skills they gain back to their local communities and continue their involvement with the ag show movement or join the show committees of the towns they move to.

An impressive number of the young women had been involved with their local ag shows since they were small children and have grown to those roles to become committee members and aid in the running of their local show, showing that regional youth are passionate about keeping their shows going strong and bringing new ideas to the table to improve and expand what's on offer to the show going public.

The other Zone 7 finalists were Grace Daunt, Lake Cargelligo, Zoe Cummings, Ganmain, Rebecca Dean, Wagga Wagga, Jennifer Maher, Hillston, Jayda Stanton, West Wyalong, Emily Potter, Cootamundra, Emily Buerckner, Ariah Park, Savera Tanuvasa, Griffith, Sophie Heinjus, Temora, Adele Thompson, Leeton, and Kasey Miller, Weethalle.

"Out of 192 ag shows in NSW fielding almost 200 entrants with just under 100 making it through to zone finals means there is a strong interest in the competition among young women in regional areas," AgShows NSW director and MC for the night Andrew Hall said.

AgShows NSW coordinator Nicky Seeto said, "Zone 7 women were well supported by their show societies and communities and we are proud of their achievements."