The judging panel for the 70th Annual Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration has been selected.

The panel consists of:

* Rollie Beard - Lewisburg

* Nathan Clark - Arab, Ala.

* Jennifer Davis - Shelbyville

* Jamie Hankins - Paris, Ky.

* Tommy Howell - Shelbyville

The group includes a mix of veterans of the world championship show and two of the top young judges in the industry.

Beard, Hankins and Howell have all been part of Celebration judging panels in the past, while Clark and Davis will be making their first appearance, although both have judged the Spring Fun Show.

Howell has the most Celebration experience of the group with five previous assignments, the most recent in 1996.

Beard was on the panel in 2005 and will be making his fifth appearance as a Celebration judge, while Hankins has been in center ring on three previous occasions, most recently in 2003.

In all, the three veterans have 12 Celebrations under their belt and were on the same Celebration judging panel in 1994.

The Celebration announced earlier that a three-judge panel will be selected for Equitation classes in 2008. Those names will be released later this week.

WHAT'S NEXT

The 70th Annual Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration is slated for Aug. 20-30 at the historic Celebration Grounds in Shelbyville.