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Federico FERNANDEZ

Federico FERNANDEZ, Mexican Jumping athlete.

Name Federico FERNANDEZ
FEI ID 10000446
Gender Male
Date of Birth 28/03/1968
Competing for Mexico - MEX
Registration Jumping 2024
Last update 16/05/2023
FEI Database

Jumping 70x70
Sport Specific Information
When and where did you begin this sport? He began riding at age nine.
Why this sport? He loves horses, as well as the health benefits riding gives him. He was also inspired by the achievements of Mexican jumping rider Humberto Mariles. "I was born very fond of all types of animals. Animals have always been very important in my life. Horses were like the most special creature in the world when I saw the first one. My uncle was into riding, and then my dad started with it as well, but I was really passionate. I always went to different clubs to try to get someone to lend me a horse and to ride as much as I could. It was always a super important part of my life since I have memory."
Club / Team Equsport: Mexico
General Interest
Hobbies Travelling. (horsesport.com, 20 Jul 2020)
Hero / Idol Austrian jumper Hugo Simon. (FEI, 04 Jul 2000)
Injuries In April 2014 he fractured two vertebrae after a fall from his horse and needed a titanium plate inserted into his back. (chronofthehorse.com, 02 Aug 2021; phelpssports.com, 10 Apr 2014)
Sporting philosophy / motto "After what happened to me [surviving an air crash] I feel an obligation to be happy. It's your will, your spirit, your determination, your power that turns a thing like this into something good instead of something that goes against you." (horsesport.com, 20 Jul 2020)
Famous relatives His wife Paola Amilibia represented Spain in jumping at the 2014 World Equestrian Games [WEG] in Normandy, France. She began representing Mexico in 2019. His uncle Fernando Senderos Mestre represented Mexico in jumping at the Olympic Games in 1976 and 1984, and also won gold in the individual event and silver in the team event at the 1975 Pan American Games in Mexico City, Mexico. (SportsDeskOnline, 26 Jul 2020; horsesport.com, 20 Jul 2020; phelpssports.com, 07 Oct 2014)
Other information SURVIVOR In 1987 he survived a plane accident when a jet carrying members of the Mexican Equestrian Federation and their horses crashed after take off in Mexico City. He spent one month in a coma and six months at a hospital in Galveston, TX, United States of America. He returned to competition a year later and in 1989 he competed at the World Cup Final in Tampa, FL, United States of America, wearing a mask and therapeutic gloves. He has undergone about 50 operations in the years that have followed. "Incredible things came from it. At this point in my life it's easy to say that, but if I could re-live my life I wouldn't change it. Everything happens for a reason. Since that day I learnt not to worry about things that don't matter, to really focus on the things you can change and not on the things you can't, and to live every day like it's your last. To create a life so that you go to bed hoping the night goes fast, because you really want the next day to start again." (leperon.fr, 23 Jul 2020; horsesport.com, 20 Jul 2020; calgarysun.com, 04 Jul 2014; psdressage.com, 04 Sep 2013) INDOOR COMPETITIONS He is unable to compete in tournaments that take place indoors due to injuries he sustained to his eyes in the plane crash. "Daylight is okay and in stadium lighting [under floodlights] I see even better, but the problem is lamps. My pupils are in only one position and can't adjust, so when I go from bright to not-so-bright, then it's like looking into a cloud." (horsesport.com, 20 Jul 2020) STABLES In 2014 he and his wife Paola Amilibia established stables in Antwerp, Belgium, where they stay when their horses are in Europe. They also run Equsport, an equestrian centre located at San Jacinta farm near Toluca, Mexico. (Federacion Ecuestre Mexicana Facebook page, 13 Feb 2022; leperon.fr, 23 Jul 2020) HORSE SHOW He and fellow Mexican rider Enrique Gonzalez created the Balvanera Horse Show in Queretaro, Mexico. "[I'm] trying to put on a real top-of-the-line horse show in our country so that the horses can develop, [and] the riders can have access to a great place to really put up their level and to enjoy together." He also organised the Mexican national jumping championships for 15 years until 2022. "Cycles come to an end. Nowadays there are several good organisers. When I began we were just a few who supported the growth of Mexican show jumping. Now, all I want to do is enjoy." (chronofthehorse.com, 02 Aug 2021; reforma.com, 02 Dec 2022) OCCUPATION In 2004 he launched Grupo SIM, which offers business services to small and medium-sized companies in Mexico. "I'm a believer that Mexico needs to [encourage] the feeling of growth for the medium and the small company so that they can become great ones. And so, I try to be that accelerator. I play a very important role in first the administration and the organising and the institutionalisation of the businesses and then also a very active role in the financial aid to help them grow." (chronofthehorse.com, 02 Aug 2021) FURTHER EDUCATION He has studied for a master's degree in senior business management at the Panamerican University in Mexico City, Mexico. (chronofthehorse.com, 02 Aug 2021)
Further Personal Information
Family Wife Paola Amilibia, children Juan Pablo, Eduardo and Federica
Occupation Athlete, Businessperson, Horse Trainer
Languages Spanish, English
Higher education Business Administration - Anahuac University North: Mexico City, MEX