Rodrigo de Paula Pessoa (born 29 November 1972 in Paris, France) is a

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian equestrian specialized in show jumping. The son of fellow equestrian

Nelson Pessoa Nelson Pessoa Filho (born December 16, 1935) is a Brazilian equestrian who competed in the sport of Show jumping. He was among the first Brazilian civilians to do well in the sport, as the military had dominated it in the Brazil of that er ...

, Pessoa is considered one of the most talented of his generation, being an

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...

gold medalist in individual jumping and having over 70

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

wins. He has represented Brazil at seven

Riding career

Pessoa first competed in 1981 at

Hickstead Hickstead may refer to: * All England Jumping Course at Hickstead, a show jumping venue in England * Hickstead (horse), an Olympic gold medal winning show jumping horse * Twineham#Hickstead, Hickstead, a hamlet in Twineham civil parish, in the Mid ...

. In 1984, he claimed his first title as champion of the pony class, again in 1985. In 1988, he competed in his first

. He continued to build up his triumphant career by competing and winning many Grands Prix. In 1992, he rode

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in the Olympic Games in Barcelona for Brazil, making him one of the youngest riders to compete in the Olympics at the age of 19. In 1996, he again rode in the Olympics in Atlanta and helped Brazil win the bronze medal with

Loro Piana TomBoy Loro Piana TomBoy VI was a horse ridden by Rodrigo Pessoa in international show jumping competition. The powerful grand prix showjumper was notable for his unusual jumping style, which saw him loosely dangle his front legs while jumping, ...

. In 1998, he rode Gandini Lianos to be the youngest World Champion at

1998 FEI World Equestrian Games The 1998 FEI World Equestrian Games were held in Rome, Italy from October 1 to October 11, 1998. They were the 3rd edition of the games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes us ...

in Rome. Pessoa took his career further by winning the World Cup Final on Baloubet du Rouet for three consecutive years in 1998, 1999, and 2000 a feat that has to this day been unmatched. He later claimed the title and prize for the world's best rider and in addition to the Show Jumping Year trophy.He has been ranked Number 1 in the World on the FEI Rankings. In 2000, he again won the bronze team medal at the Olympic Games in Sydney, and in spite of being a favorite to win the individual tournament, wound up disqualified once Baloubet twice refused to jump. In the 2004 Olympics in Athens, he won the individual silver medal, but after the disqualification of the Irish rider

Cian O'Connor Cian O'Connor (born 12 November 1979) is an Irish equestrian who competes in show jumping. He has competed at three Olympic Games, four World Championships and six European Championships, and has attained 133 senior caps for his country. He wo ...

and his horse Waterford Crystal for doping, he was awarded the gold medal in an award ceremony in Rio de Janeiro. In 2007, Pessoa won the individual silver and team gold medals at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is hel ...

, held in his hometown of Rio de Janeiro. Pessoa attracted controversy in 2008 when he was suspended by the FEI after his horse Rufus failed a doping test at the

2008 Olympic games The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

. Pessoa was fined 2,000 Swiss francs and was suspended from international competitions for four and a half months. In 2010, he finished fourth individually and fourth with his team of Brazil at the World Equestrian Games in Lexington, KY. In 2011, he again mounted the podium at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, with Team Brazil to collect a silver medal on HH Ashley. He was also chosen to be Brazil's flag bearer at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Not wanting to be a substitute in the Brazilian squad that would compete in the 2016 Summer Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro, Pessoa skipped the games and conceded his spot to Felipe Amaral, and instead covered the Olympics as a commentator for a French television channel. In the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Pessoa only took part in the team qualifier, withdrawing from participating in the finals after his horse Carlito's Way 6 refused twice on course. In 2017, Horse Sport Ireland announced Pessoa as the new Irish showjumping team manager. As chief for Team Ireland, they won the 2017 European title in Gothenburg, and in 2019 got Ireland qualified for the

2020 Tokyo Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the List of Olympic Games h ...

by winning the FEI Nation's Cup final. At the end of 2019, he ended his cooperation with Horse Sport Ireland to dedicate time to his family and riding career. He rides for

James H. Clark James Henry Clark (born March 23, 1944) is an American entrepreneur and computer scientist. He founded several notable Silicon Valley technology companies, including Silicon Graphics, Netscape, myCFO, and Healtheon. His research work in compu ...

and Artemis Farms in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by m ...

and

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Personal life

He married Alexa Weeks in 2009 and has 3 daughters Cecilia, Sophia, and Luciana. In 2019 they moved to her hometown of

Wilton, Connecticut Wilton is a New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town population was 18,503. In 2017, it was the List of Connecticut locations by per capita income, sixth-wea ...

. He operates his business called Amethyst Equestrian with his wife Alexa from his farm in

North Salem, New York North Salem is a town in the northeastern section of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately 50 miles north of Midtown Manhattan. The population of North Salem was 5,104 at the 2010 cen ...

just outside New York City and Wellington in the winter months. Conheça Rodrigo Pessoa, medalhista e ícone do hipismo nacional
''

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Brazil''

International Championship results

Horses

*Tinkabell-2006

Grey Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be compos ...

Mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than f ...

KWPN *HH Ashley – 2000,

Chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelate ...

Hanoverian The adjective Hanoverian is used to describe: * British monarchs or supporters of the House of Hanover, the dynasty which ruled the United Kingdom from 1714 to 1901 * things relating to; ** Electorate of Hanover ** Kingdom of Hanover ** Province o ...

*HH Rebozo – 2000,

Bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a nar ...

Stallion A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...

, Mexican Sport Horse *HH Palouchin de Ligny – 2000,

Gelding A gelding is a castration, castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. Castration, as well as the elimination of hormonally driven horse behavior, behavior associated with a stallion, allows a male equine to be calmer a ...

, (SF) *HH Let's Fly – 1999,

*HH Rufus – 1998,

, (KWPN) *HH Oasis –

, (SF). Died in 2007 * Baloubet du Rouet – 1989,

, (SF) *

– 1985,

, (ISH) *

– 1980,

, (ISH) * Gandini Lianos – 1987,

, (Holst) *Stardust – 1991,

, (ISH)

References

External links