Rodrigo Pessoa has a little lucky charm
Ten-year old Lulu knew before anyone else, that her father Rodrigo Pessoa, was going to win. “I was his little lucky charm,” she said after the Brazilian’s victory in the CSI5* $32,000 1.45m at the Winter Equestrian Festival [WEF] aboard Corrie 9.
Week 5 of WEF at Wellington International sees the return of French course designer Gregory Bodo, who not only designed the course at the Paris Olympics but also was recently announced as the course designer for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. Rodrigo is very familiar with the Frenchman’s work and signature style that resonated in his first day of course design this week.
“He’s one of the most talented course builders out there today and of course it’s always good,” said Rodrigo. “You always learn something, the horses always improve on the courses and so it’s always good to jump courses from him.”
That sentiment might go some way to explain the large number of entries for the opening class – the CSI2* $6,000 1m40 – which saw Sydney Shulman Desiderio and Eyepop Semilly owned by Capri Truesdale fend off 63 fellow competitors to take the win for Back Country Farm.
Rodrigo was also in it to win it when his time of 22 seconds in the two phase class was enough to take the lead from Canada’s Erynn Ballard and Chatadel PS who stopped the clock at 22.66 seconds.
“It was a good track for her,” Rodrigo said of his 11-year old Westphalian mare. “You have a plan to make it work, and it all worked out good.” Gregory has Pieter Vitse of Belgium working alongside him this week as momentum builds to Saturday Night Lights and the $500,000 Grand Prix.
Rodrigo has seven horses competing at WEF this year. “I’m lucky to have a great partnership with Artemis Farms that provide me with really great, great horses,” he said. Planning he noted is vital. “A big part of the success is to make the plans good and enter the horses when they’re ready to go, fit to go, and do well.”
Rodrigo and Corrie 9 will return to the International ring on Friday to tackle the CSI5* $62,500 1.50m speed class and another Gregory Bodo course. “He puts a lot of thought into the courses and at the end that’s what is important,” said Rodrigo, “that they really think and ask good questions to the horses and riders. Especially if it’s a speed class, he wants to go fast but smooth and so I think he really knows what he’s doing.”
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