Hannah Neleman, second from right, stands with her immediate family who hold a fraction of the banners, ribbons, and honors the young 13-year-old claimed at the 2026 Jasper County Fair: From left, Todd, Hunter, Hannah, and Katie Neleman.
To say the 2026 Jasper County Fair was a success for Hannah Neleman would be a vast understatement. The 13-year-old daughter of Todd and Katie Neleman and soon-to-be eighth grader at Lynnville-Sully brought home more than championship banners and top ribbons from the fair; she also earned the prestigious title of 2026 Brice Leonard Supreme Showmanship Champion.
The top honors were well deserved and come after long hours spent building relationships and months of sacrifice prepping for the show ring. The contest featured Neleman along with the other senior showmanship winners in the seven species – beef, swine, sheep, dairy, goat, llama, and horse. Each competitor was judged on their ability to show and control the animals they were showing – horses were shown in a showmanship pattern one at a time and livestock were shown by class.
A fact that makes the contest even more impressive is the animals Neleman and the other competitors showed in the Brice Leonard Supreme Showmanship Contest were not their own, and they had little connection with them prior to the event. The competitors were also judged on animal knowledge, appearance in the ring, attitude towards the animals and judge, and the ability to handle the animal in a safe manner. Points are tallied and the showman with the most points receives the coveted title. Neleman, who was competing for the first time in the Brice Leonard Supreme Showmanship Contest, humbly accepted the title with so much appreciation for the people who were by her side and supported her.
“This opportunity is very memorable and meaningful. This is something that not everyone gets to experience, but through this it has made me a better showman and more knowledgeable in each species,” said Neleman. “Everyone was helpful, and during the competition there are many memories made between the exhibitors that will last a lifetime.”
Not only did Neleman nab top honors in the Brice Leonard Supreme Showmanship Contest, she also brought home top honors in several other categories. She received Grand Champion breeding ewe which qualified for the Heartland Throwdown and Reserve Grand Champion honors in market steer, Red Angus, Intermediate beef showman, and Intermediate horse showman, along with a long list of blue and red ribbons and top placements in various classes. Neleman’s mother, Katie, said her daughter “hit the home run of her county fair career at the age of 13. Many others do not even get the opportunity.”
There are many people in Neleman’s corner whose sacrifice and knowledge helped pave the way to the Brice Leonard Supreme Showmanship win and county fair success. Neleman, being the younger sister of Hunter who has extensive show ring experience and success himself, has had the opportunity to watch and learn for many years. The Jasper County Fair offers open class opportunities for exhibitors under the age of nine, and Neleman participated in the open horse show, open bottle calf class, the Little Lamb/Little People, and Little Squealers shows long before she could officially show in 4-H. The experience gained by watching older exhibitors and gleaning their knowledge helped build the foundation of Neleman’s showmanship skills. And there are many people behind the scenes who have served as a mentor or helping hand on show days.
The Brice Leonard Supreme Showmanship Contest started in 2014 to honor the son of longtime fair volunteers Terry and Erlene Leonard. Their son, who died in 2010 at just 33 years old, was a longtime exhibitor at the county fair and a member of the Jasper County Fairboard. Today, the contest is a fair tradition that honors hardworking fair competitors whose participation in a variety of species places them among the best of the best. In addition to a belt buckle and monetary gift, Neleman’s name will be inscribed alongside winners from previous years on a plaque that hangs inside the Jasper County Fairgrounds pavilion.
