Competition Kicks Off at Tryon International for 2026 IHSA National Championship
Competition Kicks Off at Tryon International for 2026 IHSA National Championship
University of Lynchburg (Lynchburg, Virginia) freshman, Amaya Bellfield (Longmont, Colorado), rode to the Dover Saddlery Individual Open Equitation Over Fences national championship aboard Miami University of Ohio’s Francoe. Photo by Winslow Photography
Gladys, Va. – May 1, 2026 – Day One of the 2026 Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association (IHSA) National Championship, hosted at the Tryon International in Mill Spring, North Carolina, featured some of the top collegiate riders in the country. The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Western Head Coach Bryan Bradley of Washington College (Chestertown, Maryland), Kenn Marash was honored with the Pioneer Award. Eight founders coaches, riders and horses were inducted into the IHSA Hall of Fame.
The first national champion honor of 2026 was presented in the Dover Saddlery Individual Open Equitation Over Fences. Sixteen horse-and-rider combinations navigated the Bill Yeager-designed course, which showcased the riders pace and track with unrelated distances, rollbacks and options at fences eight and nine. Amaya Bellfied (Longmont, Colorado), a freshman from the University of Lynchburg (Lynchburg, Virginia), aboard Miami University of Ohio’s (Oxford, Ohio) Francoe, a 17.1-h bay gelding, took the top honors, giving Lynchburg their first IHSA national champion in their program’s history.
Hear from Amaya Bellfield about her winning ride in the Dover Saddlery Individual Open Equitation Over Fences.
The excitement of the NRHA Team Reining, presented by NSBA, concluded Day One competition in the Western pen. The 2026 national champion is Mackenzie Moore (Walnut Grove, Mississippi), a junior from Mississippi State University (Starkville, Mississippi) aboard Brutus, provided by the University of Findlay.
“I was obviously a little nervous. This is Nationals, but I put in a lot of preparation, and I think it really paid off,” Moore said. “We just had a very smooth, very consistent ride, and it turned out really good.”
Hear from NRHA Team Reining, Presented by NSBA National Champion Mackenzie Moore and Mississippi State University Head Coach Ashley Glenn.
Special awards were presented to Bryan Bradley for his service and dedication to collegiate riding, Kenn Marash for being the “voice of the IHSA” and to the eight inducted into the 2026 IHSA Hall of Fame class.
IHSA National Championship competition resumes Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. Highlights include the Hunter Seat High-Point Rider, presenting the Cacchione Cup and the Back on Track Western High-Point Rider Horsemanship classes.
