Canadian country star Shania Twain says marshaling this year’s Calgary Stampede parade was a long-time dream come true.
Twain led the parade wearing a white cowboy hat and white fringed jacket and riding a white horse. The parade included 30 floats, nine marching bands, and more than 700 horses walking the five-kilometre route in downtown Calgary around 9 a.m. local time on July 4.
“It’s a privilege to be the great marshal. It’s been a dream of mine for a very long time,” Twain said, adding she was very happy to do it because of her love of horses.
The parade kicks off the 10-day rodeo in Calgary that saw more than 1.3 million people attend in 2024.
The parade alone saw 350,000 people attend, according to the Calgary stampede website.
Prime Minister Mark Carney was expected to attend in the evening on July 4 to meet with vendors and tour the stalls and exhibits. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was scheduled to attend a barbeque at the stampede on July 5.
Poilievre participated in the parade, posting photos on social media of himself riding a horse alongside his wife, Anaida.
He said he was “thrilled to kick off the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth” and called it a “celebration of enterprise, family, and rugged hard work.”
Premier Danielle Smith and Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek participated by flipping pancakes for the annual pancake breakfast on July 3.
Smith also posted photos on social media of her team’s participation in the parade, saying it was a “joy” to celebrate the province’s western roots.
Gondek said the stampede was a “showcase of who we are and what we can do – together.”
Twain is also scheduled to perform as part of the Stampede Concert series in the Saddledome on July 5.
