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WoSJ Exclusive; Sergio Alvarez Moya – A Spanish superstar

Tuesday, 06 September 2011
Interview

Sergio Alvarez Moya on Wisconsin. All photos (c) Jenny Abrahamsson.
Sergio Alvarez Moya on Wisconsin. All photos (c) Jenny Abrahamsson.

With his good and accurate riding Sergio Alvarez Moya has impressed the WoSJ crew over the last couple of years, and in Aachen we finally got the chance to interview this talented and young Spanish rider.

Sergio comes from a family with an interest for horses and he became naturally involved with them from a young age; "My uncle was into horses, and I and my brothers started riding when I was seven years old. I did quite well already as a junior and young rider, and in 2001 I won the European Championship for juniors in Gijon with Flash de la Ramee. Then I competed at the Europeans in 2002, 2004 and 2005," Sergio smiles modestly. "At my first World Championship in Aachen in 2006, I was number 18 with Le Reve de Nabab," he continues. An achievement that is nothing less than impressive considering the fact that Sergio was only 21 at that time. In 2009 Moya competed at his first Global Champions Tour, and last year at the World Equestrian Festival in Aachen he came third in the prestigious Grand Prix with his amazing stallion Action Breaker (Heartbreaker x Lys de Darmen).

Sergio Alvarez Moya and Action Breaker
Sergio and Action Breaker at the World Cup final in Leipzig in April.

"Today I run a small horse business, AM Horses, together with my brother Julio. We are based in Spain. Julio helps me with the training and we look for new horses together," Sergio explains. "We try to buy quite young horses, and then they train them up to competition level before they usually get sold," Sergio says of their business. But not all horses leave their stable; their big star Action Breaker which they bought as a three year old has stayed ever since.

Action Breaker is currently Sergio’s top horse, and was his partner at the WEG last autumn and in the World Cup final in Leipzig earlier this year. "I have taken it easy with Action Breaker as he was a bit weak as a youngster. It’s been a matter of step by step with him, and he is now starting to get the routine and strength that he needs for the big shows. We didn’t demand a lot of him until last year when he jumped in the Global Champions Tour in Monaco, and from there he has gone from strength to strength," Sergio explains of his wonderful stallion. "Action Breaker was outstanding already as a youngster; he has a lot of quality and is really nice to ride," Sergio says. "At this point in the season Action Breaker feels good, and he is much stronger now than what he used to be," Moya continues.

Sergio Alvarez Moya walking the course in Zürich
Sergio Alvarez Moya walking the course in Zürich.

With his outstanding genes Action Breaker is not only a good performer in the arena, he has shown himself as a quality sire as well and his offspring have proven to be really good too. Sergio and his brother have kept some of the best ones such as the five year old Gentleman ST (Action Breaker x Carthago) and the seven year old Elixir ST (Action Breaker x Nimmerdor). "He also has a really nice son in Belgium; the seven year old Explosive III," Sergio lets us know. This year the brothers actually ran out of semen from Action Breaker, so big was the demand for this stallion; "Sorry to everyone for that," Sergio smiles. "Next year we promise it will be enough!"

Sergio also has other top horses with good results at the five star shows. The sixteen year old mare Madamme Pompadour (Apache d’Adriers x Effendi II) is one of them. She was Sergio’s partner at the last European Championship at Windsor in 2009. Recently Sergio bought Edwina Alexander’s former ride Kisby (Kaiserwind x Lohberg), a nine year old mare, which certainly has strengthened his string of horses; "She will be a good addition to my other horses for the big shows," Sergio says.

Champagne in Cannes after the Global Champions Tour class. Sergio and Action Breaker were second. Here with the winner Edwina Alexander and number three Ludger Beerbaum.
Champagne in Cannes after the Global Champions Tour class. Sergio and Action Breaker were second. Here with the winner Edwina Alexander and number three Ludger Beerbaum.

Then there is the well known Wisconsin (Darco x Coriolan). Sergio has been riding the twelve year old gelding since he was eight, and as Sergio puts it; "We have lots of good results together". Their latest win came in Aachen this year when they won the RWE Preis von Nordrhein-Westfalen, and they also won the Massimo Dutty Trophy in Hamburg in June. When riding Wisconsin Sergio is always a force to be reckoned with.

Towards the European Championships on home soil in Madrid in September Sergio is hopeful; "I have a horse that not many other riders have – and the last time I competed in a championship on home soil I won, so I have some good memories," he laughs. The Spanish rider is very modest though, and explains that he can not only focus on the championship – "We’ll se what happens – everything needs to be right," he says with a smile about the expectations surrounding him as Spain’s best rider. "I have some good horses now, and that’s really important to me. Now I can keep going!" Sergio says before he heads of to meet the Spanish coach who eagerly waits for his big star by the door.

 

Photos by Jenny Abrahamsson/Text by Hanne Christensen - copyright © worldofshowjumping.com 2011.



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