Showjumping rider ✓ AI-verified

Rodrigo PessoaOlympian

🇧🇷 Brazil · born 1972

Best known with Baloubet du Rouet — 2× Rolex Grand Prix winner

1972Born

BrazilCountry

6Famous horses

21Championship starts

About Rodrigo Pessoa

Rodrigo Pessoa, born on 29 November 1972 in Paris, France, is a Brazilian showjumping rider with a remarkable record in international equestrian competition. His father, Nelson Pessoa, trained him from an early age, and he first competed in Hickstead in 1981. Among his achievements are his consecutive World Cup Final victories from 1998 to 2000 alongside the horse 'Baloubet du Rouet'. Pessoa has represented Brazil in several Olympic Games, winning individual gold at the Athens 2004 Games. In 1998, he became the youngest World Champion at the World Equestrian Games riding 'Gandini Lianos'. Beyond competing, he has taken on roles as a coach and manager, including leading the Irish national jumping team to qualify for Tokyo 2020 since his appointment in 2016. Pessoa boasts over 70 Grand Prix wins, exceeding $7 million in earnings, and serves as the FEI Athlete Representative for Jumping from 2022 to 2026.

At a glance

Born	1972
Country	🇧🇷 Brazil
FEI world rank	#63 · 1,778 pts (list n°306, 2026-06-30) ↗
Olympic Games	Barcelona 1992 · Atlanta 1996 · Sydney 2000 · Athens 2004 · Beijing 2008 · London 2012
Prize money	Over $7 million in prize money.↗(u)40

40/99Evidence score for this page — the average across 1 cited claim, of which 0meet our two-source standard.

Each claim carries its own score: 40–55 for a single source (higher when the publisher is the studbook, the FEI or the WBFSH rather than an interested party), +25 for every further independent source that carries it, and +30 where our two-model check confirmed it against the cited page. 70 is the pass mark; nothing ever reaches 100. (u) marks the 1 claim still resting on a single source — likely correct, most are, but not yet independently confirmed. How we score evidence

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Championship record

Barcelona 19929th individual · Special EnvoyAtlanta 1996team bronze · TomboySydney 2000team bronze · Baloubet du RouetAthens 2004individual gold · Baloubet du RouetBeijing 2008disqualified · RufusLondon 201222nd individual · HH RebozoLondon 20128th team · HH Rebozo

Year	Championship	Result	Horse
2014	World Championships · Normandy	21st individual↗	Status
2014	World Championships · Normandy	5th team↗	Status
2012	Olympic Games · London	22nd individual↗	HH Rebozo
2012	Olympic Games · London	8th team↗	HH Rebozo
2010	World Championships · Lexington	4th individual↗	HH Rebozo
2010	World Championships · Lexington	4th team↗	HH Rebozo
2008	Olympic Games · Beijing	disqualified↗	Rufus
2004	Olympic Games · Athens	individual gold↗	Baloubet du Rouet
2002	World Championships · Jerez de la Frontera	26th individual↗	Baloubet du Rouet
2002	World Championships · Jerez de la Frontera	9th team↗	Baloubet du Rouet
2000	Olympic Games · Sydney	team bronze↗	Baloubet du Rouet
2000	World Cup Final · Las Vegas	won↗	Baloubet du Rouet
1999	World Cup Final · Gothenburg	won↗	Baloubet du Rouet
1998	World Cup Final · Helsinki	won↗	Baloubet du Rouet
1998	World Championships · Rome	individual gold↗	Gandini Lianos
1996	Olympic Games · Atlanta	team bronze↗	Tomboy
1994	World Championships · The Hague	8th individual↗	Special Envoy
1994	World Championships · The Hague	4th team↗	Special Envoy
1992	Olympic Games · Barcelona	9th individual↗	Special Envoy
1990	World Championships · Stockholm	23rd individual↗	Special Envoy
1990	World Championships · Stockholm	8th team↗	Special Envoy

One row per championship appearance, as reported by the cited sources.

Results on record

Year	Show	Class	Placing	Horse
2004	CHI Geneva	Rolex Grand Prix↗	Winner	Baloubet du Rouet
2002	CHI Geneva	Rolex Grand Prix↗	Winner	Baloubet du Rouet
2001	CSIO Spruce Meadows ‘Masters’ Tournament	CPKC ‘International’, presented by Rolex↗	Winner	Gandini Lianos
2000	CHI Geneva	Rolex Grand Prix↗	Winner	Lianos
2000	CSIO Spruce Meadows ‘Masters’ Tournament	CPKC ‘International’, presented by Rolex↗	Winner	Gandini Lianos

From the shows results ledger — every row cited to its source.

Horses

Horse	Years	Together
Baloubet du Rouet	late 1990s-2004	Won three consecutive World Cup Finals and an individual Olympic gold medal in Athens 2004.
Gandini Lianos	1998	Partnered with Pessoa to win the World Championship at the 1998 FEI World Equestrian Games.
HH Rebozo	2010	Finished 4th individually and with Team Brazil at the 2010 World Equestrian Games.
HH Rufus	2008-2009	Competed at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and placed 5th in the 2009 World Cup Final.
Special Envoy	1990-1994	Rodrigo's partner during his early international career, including the 1990 World Equestrian Games.
HH Ashley	2011	secured team silver at the 2011 Pan American Games

Linked horses have their own cited EquiWiki profile.

Watch Rodrigo Pessoa ride — 8 clips

2026Rodrigo Pessoa - Major Tom (26/07/2026)

2026Rodrigo Pessoa - Prins Van’T Eigenlo (25/07/2026)

2024Rodrigo Pessoa & Major Tom | $340,000 LONGINES FEI Jumping World Cup™ Washington President's Cup

2024Profession Cavalier avec Rodrigo Pessoa

2018What I've Learned As Chef d'Equipe: Rodrigo Pessoa

2016Rodrigo Pessoa UNBELIVEAVBLE Jumper Round

2010Rodrigo Pessoa as Speed Rider, WIHS 2010

1999RE-LIVE | Baloubet du Rouet & Rodrigo Pessoa jump to the top | Gothenburg 1999 |FEI World Cup™ Final

Sources

✓ Cross-checked by GPT-4o + Claude · 1 Aug 2026Every claim on this page was checked against the cited sources by two independent AI models.

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