TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas residents are being encouraged to try their skill at pitching horseshoes to qualify for the world championships being held next year in Topeka.

The Topeka Horseshoe Association and the Kansas Horseshoe Pitching Association say more than 1,500 people are expected to compete in July 2015 at two venues in Topeka.

Kansas will have several qualifying events over the next year at locations including Bonner Springs, Salina, Topeka and Wichita.

Topeka outbid cities in Texas and West Virginia for the 2015 world championship. The event last took place in Kansas in 1909, in the southeastern town of Bronson.