Jacob Arnold (Paris, Ky.) and Jazandro G.T. finished a stellar weekend at Tryon International Equestrian Center (TIEC), topping the USEF Combined Driving National Championship for Advanced Single Horses with a final score of 139.10 across three phases. This is Arnold and Jazandro G.T.’s first national championship title as a partnership. Leslie Berndl (Lexington, Ky.) and Impressive earned reserve national champion honors, finishing the weekend on a score of 157.55.

Photo – Jacob Arnold and Jazandro G.T. (©SharonPackerPhotography)

“First and foremost, I would like to thank Andy for his tremendous effort this week, as well as his owners, Cathy and Peter Thomas, my navigator, Colten Parker, and my grooms and staff – Noelle Price, Sonia Williams, Beth Dahlberg, and Taz Lester. My team and I are so pleased with Andy’s progress over the last couple months,” said Arnold. “This was only his third time competing as an FEI 3* Single Horse and it was exciting to have the best dressage score on Friday. It put us into a great position going into the marathon. Andy has learned quickly the pressure, effort, and skill it takes to be competitive at the top level. He really shined through in Saturday’s marathon, taking second by one point and holding the lead overall. The cones course on Sunday was proving to be difficult, very tight turns and challenging angles with a quick time allowed.”

Secured

Arnold and Jazandro G.T., a 2014 Dutch Harness Horse gelding (Cizandro x Elvira) owned by Cathy Thomas, nearly led the division from start to finish, never finishing below second individually across the three phases. The pair earned a 48.89 in the dressage and built on their performance with a stellar marathon day, finishing with a score of 90.12. The duo continued to impress with their cones phase, adding no penalties to their two-phase combined score of 139.10 to ultimately secure the win.

“Andy has one of the best extended trots in the world and I used that to my advantage when navigating the track. He stayed fluid and forward with me every step of the way and trusted my guidance when the route was tricky or blind,” explained Arnold. “He was the only double clear in the class and helped us solidify the win. I could not be happier with how far he is coming in such a short amount of time, and I look forward to continuing to work with this horse in the future. Thanks again to his owner’s, Cathy and Peter for their endless support and encouragement.”

Quite Tight

With Impressive, Berndl was nipping at Arnold’s heels throughout the week, and produced a score of 50.78 in dressage to keep the scores quite tight moving into marathon. The duo added 97.06 penalties to their score following Saturday’s highlight event, before adding 9.71 to their final score after crossing through the finish of their cones phase.

Overall, the USEF Combined Driving National Championship for Advanced Single Horses saw four combinations complete the weekend with a competitive battle for a podium finish, as second through fourth place were separated by just two penalties.

The Katydid CDE served as the final qualifying competition in the U.S. for the upcoming 2026 FEI Driving World Championships for Single Horses to be hosted in Munich, Germany, from September 1-6, 2026.

Results