ABOUT ME
I have been able to combine my passion for animals and for sport in the practice of dressage, which I have been practicing since I was 15 years old.
My discipline, persistance and determination have allowed me to compete in five Olympic Games (Atlanta'96, Sydney'00, Athens'04 , Rio'16 and Tokyo´20), as well as three World Championships (The Hague'94, Jerez'02 and Tryon´ 18) and several European Championships, where I have gathered 8 medals.
I enjoy this marvelous sport and my relationship with the horses every day. I am a great defender of animals, whom I love and respect deeply. I became vegan in 2011 and have found a philosophy of life totally in line with my way of feeling and seeing the world.
MY PHILOSOPHY
When I was little I wanted to have a horse to take care of it, that's how I started riding. And I still have the same philosophy today: I have my horses to ride, because I love to teach and compete them, it seems to me an extraordinary and very interesting challenge; but above all, my drive is to take care of them and do everything possible to make them happy. I am convinced that they perform much better if they work for the rider, if they also enjoy it and want to give you everything. That is the true beauty of dressage: a pair in harmony, where the riding looks easy and balanced.
To achieve this, the horse must be very fit both physically and psychologically. A varied training, good care and repect are essential to achieve this goal. This is what we all pursue every day at Villa Equus.
We also apply this philosophy to our human team, since riders and grooms must be physically and mentally fit.
At Villa Equus we have a great gym and swimming pool, and a physical trainer who comes three times a week.
Both horses and riders have to take care of themselves like the elite athletes that they are.
CHARITY
I make donations to various organizations, both in defense of animals and the planet, as well as helping people and children.
I feel lucky to be able to help protect the planet and to improve the lives of people and animals.
These are the organizations with which I cooperate:
PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)
WWF (World Wide Fund)
GREENPEACE
SOS GALGOS
ADE (Asociación de la Defensa de los Équidos)
INTERMÓN OXFAM
SAVE THE CHILDREN
MY HORSES
CURRENT
ELEGANCE
2009 - KWPN
FATHER: Negro
MOTHER: Reina x Monaco
He is a fantastic horse, with a neverending energy. I bought it from Anne and Gertjan Van Olst when he was 3 years old. He is a strong and very hot horse, but he is finally beginning to calm down and has started showing nice Grand Prix tests. He still has a lot to improve and I am convinced that he will become a top horse. At the moment we have won 3 Spanish championships (2020, 2021 and 2023) and we have competed in the Olympic Games in Tokyo'20.
FIRST LADY
2010 - KWPN
FATHER: San Remo
MOTHER: Zappa x Tolando
First Lady is my princess, I have had her since she was 3 years old. She is a very big mare and therefore she has needed more time to grow and control her body. She is developing spectacular movements, although it takes longer for everything.
She has a very nice contact, I love to ride her. She loves hacking and has extraordinary power.
QUOTENPRINZ
2014 - Rheinländer
FATHER: Quotenkönig
MOTHER: Fine Frenzy x Fidertanz
QP has been with me since he was 4 years old. I am very happy with his progress, he is becoming a great horse. The walk and canter were very good from the beginning, he has caught spark and has developed a very expressive trot.
He's very focused, an exceptional brain. It will make people talk, I am convinced!
I bought it on the advice of my great friend Carlos Domínguez who, together with his partner Michele Widner, buys with very good criteria 3-4-month-old foals, grow them and sell them or give them to riders. At the moment they are having a lot of success with most of the horses they have discovered.
RÍO DUERO
2012 - Westfaliano
FATHER: Blue Horse Romanov
MOTHER: Sunshine x Samarant
He arrived in Villa Equus in early 2019 from Zamora. He was owned by Javier Hernández.
Río Duero is an exceptional horse, the sensations are extraordinary. Little by little he is gaining in confidence and I am convinced that he will be a top horse in the future.
DIAMOND DANCER
2011 - Oldenburgo
FATHER: De Niro
MOTHER: Weniga II x Andiamo
I bought Diamond at the Klosterhof Medingen foal auction when he was 4 months old. After two years he came to Spain, he was in a field in Vic, and when he was 3 years old he came to Villa Equus. He has three good gaits. And is becoming a very interesting horse, with more energy and lovely movement.
SAMURAI 92
2014 - Hannoveriano
FATHER: San Amour
MOTHER: Lauretta x Lauries Crusador
Samurai arrived in Villa Equus in December 2019, also from Carlos Dominguez and Michele Widner, who have been living in Münster, Germany for two years.
He is another very focused horse, I think that when he gains strength he will be a horse for the future.
MY CHAMPIONS FROM THE PAST
BEAUVALAIS
1987-2018 - Westfaliano
FATHER: Bolero
MOTHER: Galante x Grande
Beauvalais has been my adventure partner for 18 years. He has been with me since July 1999, when he was 12 years old.
At first, those who knew him told me that I would never get anywhere with him because he had a very difficult character and was very complicated.
My feelings from the day I tried were wonderful and I had always believed in him.
Our great connection gave us numerous victories and some medals at the European and World Championships and a silver and a bronze at the Olympic Games in Athens 2004.
With a relationship of absolute complicity and an iron health, Beauvalais led me to the elite of world dressage. He lived to be nearly 31 years old, always in top shape.
He has left a deep mark in my life. I miss him dearly.
FABERGÉ
1996 - Hannoveriano
FATHER: Falkland
MOTHER: Akelei x Akzent I
Fabergé came into my hands at the age of 4, just before the Sydney Olympics. Very fearful at first, he turned into a beautiful horse with great potential. He started competing in the Grand Prix with magnificent results until a serious injury in the Olympic Games in Beijing ´08 (Hong Kong) kept him away from competition for two years. When he finally came back, he was never the same.
I am very grateful to him for everything he taught me. Now he lives happily retired going out to the field every day.
SIR RADJAH
2005-2016 - Westfaliano
FATHER: Sir Donnerhall I
MOTHER: Romina x Radjah Z
With Radjah it was love at first sight, better said at the first feeling. When I sat on him when he was 3, I loved his power and his desire to work. He competed until Grand Prix with success and I enjoyed him enormously.
His sudden death from a colic at age 11 coming back from a competition has been one of the saddest moments of my life.
He was always a very special horse for me and I think of him very often.
DELGADO
2001 - Westfaliano
FATHER: De Niro
MOTHER: Windrose x Weltmeier
He had been with me since he was 6 years old. It was all heart. We lived many adventures together, numerous injuries at first, until we managed to stabilize him thanks to an unbeatable team of professionals (farrier, massage therapist, chiropractor and veterinarian).
We won many Grand Prix, four Senior Spanish Championships (2016 to 2019) and a wonderful and unexpected bronze medal in the Kür at the European Championship in Aachen in 2015 with our beautiful music 'Fighting to the end' produced by Dressage&Music. In November 2021 we retired him at the Madrid Horse Week horse show when he was 20 years old. He very sadly passed away on June 24, 2023.
VILLA EQUUS
It is a wonderful property where you can keep the horses in the best possible conditions: spacious, bright and well-ventilated boxes, arenas with top quality ground, indoor arena, canter track, forests and paths for walking and galloping, paddocks, spa and aquatrainer.
All in a natural environment of extraordinary beauty.
For all the team in Villa Equus there is also a fantastic gym with a heated pool to do fitness and improve our performance.
TEAM VILLA EQUUS
Our team is made up of great professionals. We are driven by passion for sports and for these beautiful animals. Every achievement, every success, every trophy is the result of the common effort of all of us who make up the team. We are like a gear placed in detail, where all the pieces have to work together to achieve a good result, that is our great credit. We will explain a little who makes up this great team.
RIDERS
I have an extraordinary team of riders at Villa Equus: The professional rider who helps me daily is Cristina Torrent from Menorca (December '21). She is a very responsible and hard worker. She values and believes in my method of training horses with respect, patience and varied training. And it is paying off, as they both have good horses to compete with.
Carolina Usandizaga has also been with me since after the OG in Sydney 2000: she started in the youth category and has reached the Grand Prix level. Now she has Jiddo, a 2014 KWPN son of Vivaldi, and trains with Berna Pujals.
Julia Álvarez arrived at Villa Equus in 2017 at the age 16 with her grey mare O'Hara. She competed in 2018 at the European Championships in Fontainebleau in the junior category with my mare Dark Rose and finished 6th in the team competition and went on to the individual final. Now she is riding her horse Du Pré, with whom she was Spanish Champion in 2020 in the Young Rider category, won the 2022 Criterium in Small Tour and was third this 2023. She also participated in the Young Riders European Championship in Oliva'21, where she ended up 4th with the team. Now that she has finished her university studies in dentistry, she can devote herself to her passion, she is currently riding Dark Rose de Fangar, hanoverian mare born in 2010, with whom she participated in the European Junior Championship in 2018 and is now doing the U25 category, competing in the European Championship un Budapest´23; Formentera, a Hanoverian mare born in 2017; Lerrit, a KWPN gelding born in 2016, son of Everdale; Samurai, born in 2014 son of San Amour; and Strahleman, Hanoverian born in 2007.
Tatiana Pielias with her horse Hamilton BCN have been at Villa Equus since August 2022. They are having a very positive evolution, not only at a technical level but also in their relationship with each other and their ability to understand each other on and off the arena.
GROOMS
Our team of senior grooms are professionals with great experience and organizational skills, they have a very broad knowledge of the needs of our horses and possess a high degree of responsibility and involvement in their work. They are: Anouar El Harrak, Clazien Dragt, Cristina Marsal, Aitana Gómez and Nazaret Gallego.
We also have a team of junior grooms who, with great energy and dedication, are learning every day to take care of our horses, performing well and progressing every day. They are Raquel Cervantes, Irene De Andrés, Marta García, Andrea Lobo, Beatriz Tinoco, Carla Martinez, Lidia Rovira and Gisela Barastegui.
MAINTENANCE
The Villa Equus facilities are maintained by a good team that takes care of the property. Toni Coto (maintenance manager), Mario Vidal, Vasile Hincu and Orlando Palma make everything work properly.
We also have two cooks who take care of us and prepare very delicious vegan dishes to have energy and perform at the best. Their names are Angélica Palma and Vanesa Bartoll.
MANAGEMENT
Beatriz Ferrer-Salat as director of the center, Sara Comadevall as stable manager and Gala Planas as deputy general manager are in charge of managing the strategic and business part of Villa Equus, as well as the sports and competition part. With them Villa Equus manages to perform at its best and be a reference in the equestrian world.
WORK WITH US
Are you a dynamic, resolute and energetic person who wants to grow professionally in the world of horses and who wants to be part of our team? Send us your CV and explain why you want to work with us. We will be happy to interview you.
CONTACT US!
VACANT POSITIONS
We currently do not have any vacancies to fill but you can contact us for future opportunities.
Persona de MantenimientoEXTERNAL COLLABORATORS
A fundamental part of our team are the professionals who come to treat and train our horses. The joint effort of all of us together is what makes the horses progress and reach their maximum potential, always healthy and willing to work.
BERNA PUJALS: TRAINER
Berna is a great professional in the horse world. We have known each other since we were 16 years old and I have always admired her a lot. She has been living in Mexico for 25 years and has finally come back to Spain.
Among her greatest successes are a 10th place at the 2006 WEG in Aachen and 9th at the 2008 Hong Kong Olympics. She has also competed at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
We are very lucky to have her in Villa Equus to train me and the other riders.
ADOLFO MARTÍNEZ DE BUJO: PIAFFE & PASSAGE
Adolfo, in addition to being a great friend of mine for many years, is our master of piaffe-passage. Since 2008 he comes to work with our horses at Villa Equus. Starting from foals, he trains them like a game, the horses learn piaffe and passage without stress, as Adolfo teaches them with patience and without time pressure.
CARME CAMA: HORSEMANSHIP
Natural horsemanship is an interaction based on the desire for well-being towards these animals. It is about understanding their body language to build a relationship of respect and trust in which there must be reciprocal communication.
Carme started with us in 2009 and comes every week to work with the horses.
Carme Cama
Natural horsemanship allows us to develop a better relationship with horses. Being based on their natural behavior and how horses communicate, we get them to trust themselves and the people who take care of them. This means that when it comes to learning and accepting new situations and environments, they are more mentally and emotionally willing.
One of the work tools that I use is to prepare a series of foot-to-ground exercises with the help of different objects such as tarpaulins, cavaletti, tramming bars, cones, etc… to simulate situations, in this case in a safe and controlled environment, similar to those that horses may encounter at different times of handling and training, creating a relationship of mutual trust.
GABRIELLE HORRICKS-WEBB: EQUINE BODY WORKER
Gabrielle is an equine body worker. She comes once a month and spends about an hour with each horse: she relaxes their muscles, undoes contractures and stretches them.
With her I make the optimal weekly personalized training plan for each horse. Every month we review it according to their development.
She has also taught us to use new work tools such as long reins or Equiband.
ÁLVARO VELA: THE CHIROPRACTIC
Chiropractic is a therapy that acts on the MUSCO-SKELETAL system and, through the “chiropractic adjustment”, corrects the subluxations (lack of movement) of this system, thus optimizing its functioning.
But it is not only about optimizing the biomechanics of the horse (making the joints move correctly), but the most important benefit is obtained by freeing the NERVOUS SYSTEM, especially the nerve roots coming from the spinal cord, from the pressure caused by the vertebrae that were subluxated, restoring the normal NERVOUS FLOW and thus improving the HEALTH of the horse in general. This part is the most important and its effect can be seen by observing the change in the horses’ faces when they receive the treatment.
I introduce to you Alvaro Vela, our new chiropractor who will treat our 4-legged athletes at Villa Equus. He has many years of experience and great knowledge to help solve any discomfort that our horses may have.
MARGA NAVARRO: DIETIST
Each of the horses at Villa Equus gets a diet that has been specifically formulated based on their body condition, metabolic state, sports activity, character and emotional state.
Every 2-3 months it is reviewed and adjusted according to the development of the horse. She also prescribes homeopathy or does acupuncture when she feels it is necessary.
DAVID CANES & JORDI TORRENS: FARRIERS
Absolutely essential for an optimal performance of the horse is the shoeing: people are often not aware of its enormous importance. David & Jordi study each horse thoroughly and does an extraordinary job. They are a great team, always positive and willing to help.
GASPAR CASTELIJNS & EQUIHEALTH: VETS
Gaspar and his team make up the excellent group of veterinarians who treat our horses on a daily basis. Equihealth is a society made up of nine veterinarians with extensive experience and specific training in various specialties. Always available and efficient, we have a magnificent relationship.
ERIK RENOBELL: THE DENTIST
Erik has been treating our horses since 2014. Good dental care is critical to horse health and performance. Since he's close, he can come as soon as there is a problem. He is very serious and a good professional.
CAROLINA ROCA: HOLISTIC TERAPHY
Animals, like people, are much more than a physical body
. Our physical body is covered by an energetic globe, better known as aura, made up of different lawyers and sublevels. Any disease, dysfunction, behavior, situation we live in, etc. comes from the energy information that our energy globe contains.
Through quantum physics techniques and holistic therapies you can correct the energy blockages that are causing this disease, unwanted behavior, trauma, etc. that affects us, so that when that information disappears from the energetic body, it also disappears from the physical body.
DIEGO LINARES
I consider physical preparation fundamental for an athlete. It is the way to work your body to perform at its best, strengthening both the muscles you use most for your sport and compensating and toning the rest of the body.
That is why, in addition to riding, I train three times a week with a physical trainer and if I can I do a few more sessions on my own in the magnificent gym that we have in Villa Equus.
Diego Linares, with whom I started in January 2019 and who has developed a specialized training system for riders called Rider Balance.
ALEX GORDILLO
We are fortunate to have in our external team the collaboration of Alex Gordillo, who was a sports psychologist in the RFHE between 2010 and 2022, and now helps the riders of Villa Equus as well as anyone who needs it.
Alex is a professor at the INEFC of Lleida and has a wide experience applied in different federations and sports clubs (basketball, golf, equestrian).
We are very happy to be able to enjoy his advices.
¿DO YOU OWN A HORSE?
PUPILAGE
- Box of approx. 3.5m x 4m with interior and exterior window
- Thorough box cleaning once a day and review throughout the day (2 to 3 times)
- Feed 3 times a day and supplements if necessary
- Hay 4 times a day
- Groom: who will take care of the horse, constant review of the state of health, preparation and do ground work.
- Cleaning and take care of the horse (includes material such as grease, sprays…)
TRAINING
- Training with Beatriz Ferrer-Salat or assistant coach in her absence
- Track training
- Field work
- Ground work (rope, long reins, EQB)
- Piaffe-passage specific training
- Horsemanship
OTHER SERVICES
- Spa: cold water 2ºC with salts to recover or avoid injuries
- Aquatrainer: treadmill with water for training and recovery from injuries
- Clipping
- Nutritionist:
- – complete personalized diet according to the needs of each horse
- – readjustments in diet, supplements, necessary correctors and specific medications
- Massage therapist
- Chiropractor
- Farrier
- Veterinarian
- Alternative therapies
- Contests: guides for contests, reservation of boxes, inscriptions, groom, etc.
- Staying per night
FACILITIES
- Indoor arena 60×20
- Indoor arena 60×20
- Canter track
- Indoor launching track
- Outdoor launching track
- Paddocks