Daniel Pinto Appointed Sports Director of Italian Dressage Stable Fonte Abeti

Dressage

Portugal

Portuguese Grand Prix rider Daniel Pinto has been appointed the new sports director of the Italian dressage stable and breeding yard Fonte Abeti.

Fonte Abeti is owned by Riccardo Volpi with its head stable for 150 horses in Sansepolcro and 400 hectares of additional land in the Marche.

Two Horses to Portugal

Daniel Pinto has now been hired to head the sport direction of the yard.

"Riccardo Volpi strongly believes in the concepts of classic equitation," the official press release. "To assure to Allevamento Fonte Abeti`s horses and riders the best technical support, following the principles of the training scale, Daniel Pinto will lead Allevamento Fonte Abeti’s team in training and competing the horses."

Two of Fonte Abeti's best performing young horses horses have been sent to Pinto's stable in Arruda dos Vinhos in Portugal. They are the 7-year old Hanoverian Ecuador di Fonte Abeti (by Negro x Sir Donnerhall) and the 6-year old Hanoverian Fiamma di Fonte Abeti (by Franklin x De Niro).

Ecuador won silver and double gold at the Italian Young Horse Championship from 2019 till 2021. He also placed 36th in the consolation finals at the 2021 Bundeschampionate and 14th in the consolation finals at the 2021 World Young Horse Championships.

New Riders in Italy

Fonte Abeti is one of, if not Italy's most successful dressage breeding yard. Approximately 25 foals are bred there annually.

Frederico Mexia and Ecuador di Fonte Abeti
at the 2021 World Young Horse Championships

Their most successful breeding products were sold abroad. Belgian Nick van Laer piloted Conan Di Fonte Abet (by Apache x Sir Donnerhall) to bronze and gold at the 2018 and 2019 Belgian Young Horse Championships. He competed him at the 2018 and 2019 World Yougn Horse Championships in Ermelo. Spaniard Pablo Gomez Molina rode Easy di Fonte Abeti (by Grand Galaxy Win x UB40) to the U.S. Young Horse Champion's title in 2020.

Fonte Abeti began making headlines in national competition sport with Spaniard Carlos Munoz Cantos as their head rider at the yard in Sansepolcro seven years ago. At that time Italian Olympian Valentina Truppa was also given the ride on several Fonte Abeti horses.

In May 2018 Spaniard Víctor Alfonso Pomares replaced Munoz and he was soon joined by his fiancée, Spanish U25 rider Alba Abollo Fontela. Pomares campaigned Grand Prix horse Hot Point di Fonte Abeti at CDI's in 2019 and 2020, amongst other younger horses.

In the summer of 2020 Volpi suddenly ended the collaboration with Pomares and Abollo followed him back to Spain. They were replaced by Portuguese Frederico Mexia de Almeida, who stayed for a year. In the autumn of 2021, right after a successful Italian Young Horse Championships, he left the Italian yard and is now working at Gestut Sprehe in Germany.

The in-house riders in Italy that have stepped up to the plate are Nelson Ramos Aleluia and Leandro Freire. Pinto will travel to Italy once per month for an update on the riding there.