Chester Weber during the dressage test that led to a CAIO4* Saumur win (pixelvisuel.com)

Saumur, France - Chester Weber took an early lead in Saumur on Friday, and when the cones phase of the CAIO4* ended on Sunday he'd turned that lead into a dominant victory. Weber (Ocala, Fla.) earned the individual Four-in-Hand win over 32 other drivers and was a nearly eighteen points better than his closest competitor. That wide margin of victory helped lead the U.S. team to a third-place finish in Nations Cup competition.

The U.S. Team of Allison Stroud, Weber, and Misdee Wrigley-Miller, earned a Bronze placing and trailed only the Dutch team in first place and the French team in second.

In the individual competition, Weber held a nine point lead when Sunday's rides through the cones began. With only a single ball down on the course, for three additional penalty points and eighth place in the phase, he more than guaranteed himself the overall win. When the final scores were tallied Weber finished with an impressive 129.25 and ended up well ahead of runner-up Theo Timmerman from The Netherlands. Timmerman's 147.06 left him out of reach of Weber, but fractions of a point ahead on compatriot Koos de Ronde who finished in third with 147.99.

Weber has now won the 4* at Saumur two years in a row. In 2013 he won the CAI-A4* with an overall score of 128.5.

Stroud (West Grove, Pa.) finished 20th overall in the individual competition with a score of 199.28 and Wirgley-Miller (Lakewood Ranch, Fla.) ended the weekend in 26th with a 217.19.

In the Four-in-Hand Pony division, American Laurie Astegiano finished strong Sunday by winning the cones phase. She and he pony team were clear through the obstacles and amassed only 2.44 time penalties. Astegiano, who lives and trains in France, finished 4th overall with a 158.57 total score. Belgium's Nathan Nijs won the division with a 144.40.

Get full results and learn more about the Saumur CAIO4* here: http://www.saumur.org/cai/accueil-gb.html

Follow the U.S. Driving Team here.