Loro Piana Tomboy: most powerful showjumper ever!

FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER: @ImmortalSynn
The incalculably powerful Loro Piana Tomboy VI secures the first ever Olympic medal in Equestrian for the nation of Brazil.
Also, in a heartbreaker of a round that can be seen in the following link; this magnificent horse also went clear in the final individual round of the competition, but missed the jumpoff for the medals by a single second (time fault):
• Loro Piana Tomboy: hea...
This horse's characteristic "dangling", and thus his need to add impressive amounts of "air" between himself and the fences to ensure clearance for his front legs-- have earned for him, by many, the title of "World's Most Powerful ShowJumper"...
...don't believe it? Then watch the jump at 01:06, that's a 6ft-wide oxer!
Clip shown is of 2nd-round of team competition, Atlanta summer games, 1996. Video courtesy of Premier Horse Network, and the National Broadcasting Company Inc.

[@12345KATETHEGREAT]

wow, he has such an unigue jumping style!

[@maddiefaith1417]

I love how the rider didn't try to catch the horses mouth,and also gave him some rein. 😋

[@pepsitang8746]

Anyone notice the horse is in a hackamore? ;)

[@martinatscherner6861]

PepsiTanG yup 😀

[@hattiemaex4077]

All I can say is that this horse is beautiful... The flow of his canter into the rise of the jump and the balanced landing says it all. This horse knows what it's doing.. Great vid! Great horse!

[@lucathecob3194]

beautiful style and is he using a hackamore? if so that man has my respect

[@martinatscherner6861]

LucaTheCob yes, a hackamore 😀

[@ImmortalSynn]

"I've never seen this horse jump before." ...it was truly a sight to behold. The most amazing thing I've ever seen in the equestrian world, was when he won the Alberta Power 6-Bar at Spruce Meadows. He jumped 6'9" in the final round for the win, and cleared it by a mile! What makes it so incredible, is that in a 6-Bar, you only get TWO strides to the final jump.

[@user-fo3hj2ep9n]

I wonder how many times he's fallen off this Tomboy, looking at the horse it surely got some temper :)

[@irisgrune1120]

He is not jumping, he is flying!

[@sethdelano6033]

Pinned ears don't always mean that they are mad.

[@KaregoAt]

+Seth Delano His ears aren't even pinned? They're turned back = he focuses on the rider.

[@rgolivieri9969]

I remember jumping my horse after doing a few months of straight dressage with her, and she was very similar to this. I had built up so much strength in her hind end, that we both underestimated how much spring she had. Rather than springing up, however, she sprung forwards. We landed a good meter farther than where I estimated, and it threw off my stride count >.

[@just_a_waterbottle6827]

No joke my jaw dropped for this video, I have never seen any horse jump so... perfectly

[@ImmortalSynn]

You might've, had you seen just how much most of the other horses struggled with some fences. To see the sheer power/scope this horse was capable of just NEVER got old.

[@ImmortalSynn]

Indeed, he's amazing. And still alive, 17yrs later! (he was 14 when this was filmed)

[@GucciGang-lj3xm]

At first I thought that he would fault at combos seeing that momentum that goes into one jump. But woah that horse can fly...

[@109367]

Very unorthodox, never seen a horse jump like that xD interesting

[@ImmortalSynn]

Hmm, never really seen Tomboy be accused of having style, lol.... but he's certainly got the scope!

[@ImmortalSynn]

Indeed, Rodrigo was really about the only one who could sit Tomboy's jump and keep it together with him sufficiently to excel at the FEI level. His past riders had a lot of difficulty with that.

[@sarahk1965]

What a great horse!!! Look at that spring!

[@sincerelyalina]

sar ko *Jump

[@sarahk1965]

Winter Star No, I meant the spring in his jump. He wasn't just lumbering over a couple of jumps, he was putting his heart into it, and enjoying it!

[@sincerelyalina]

sar ko Okay i'm so sorry! 😅😅

[@sarahk1965]

Winter Star No worries!☺

[@threexcaravans]

I've never seen a horse jump like that! Leaves so much clearance. Amazing :)

[@luluvlogs2471]

The strength of the horses jump, Wow.

[@ImmortalSynn]

...he really is amazing, and he's both still alive today and still the N.America 6bar record holder, 16yrs later!

[@pinkweaselgirl]

as the announcer said, tomboy does have a very unique style...i think it looks hard to ride but it definately puts tomboy higher in the air and lets him get his legs out of the way...well done rodrigo! beautiful round

[@ImmortalSynn]

Indeed, he certainly is gorgeous... I was always so impressed by how amazingly "full" of a tail he has!

[@ImmortalSynn]

...he wasn't "taught" to do that, its mostly thought to stem from his youth injury. Anyways, he retired more than 10yrs ago.

[@ImmortalSynn]

Dunno about mounting, but as Mary states here, it's very difficult to stay with him on the landing side of a fence... his past riders had significant trouble with it, but Rodrigo was able to figure it out. And it was this horse that really began to put Rodrigo on the map on a worldwide stage-- before Lianos, before Baloubet.

[@laurelcook9078]

All of us show jumpers have the struggle of releasing and sitting back up when the front end of the horse begins its decent.

[@jessyandjake]

Ha ha .. I remember him so well.. massive jump, dodgy technique and his ears pinned back all the way.What a horse, I wouldnt have sat it over a cross pole! The pessoas are great trainers but would not be forcefull so if tomboy hadnt of wanted to jump.... he wouldnt have. And the riding was spot on .. as usual!

[@ah1998]

WOW. freakshow! amazing horse...imagine how high the jumps would have to be to get him to fold those legs in!

[@lillianrogers8208]

This horse is purely wonderful.

[@whiskerstea]

Oh wow, this is that horse... he is freakin... BEAUTIFUL over the jumps. Little angry looking but I think that's the majesty to it. Very beautiful.

[@ElessarEquestrian]

and he's bitless!!! LOVE it!

[@xxHappyHoneyxx]

der überspringt ja mal so krass ... ob das wirklich so wünschenswert ist?

[@dclogojan]

Wow. That's quite impressive (: the horse was pretty eager and frustrated during the whole thing ((;

[@GoLightly01100]

They were always such fun to watch, Tomboy attacked his fences ferociously. What an amazing partnership. Thanks for posting, and Merry Christmas!

[@ImmortalSynn]

@Christiex2 "wow he's beautiful." Isn't he though?! Such a unique and amazing jumper!

[@ImmortalSynn]

@mckennarules9 Tomboy, no... though interestingly enough, I *do* have a video of Rio Grande doing that. When Tomboy set the North American 6Bar record, by jumping 6'9" with only two strides worth of momentum (a tied record that still stands today!)... Nancy Southern later asked Rodrigo if he was nervous about attempting that. He answered "No. Well, a little bit, but I've trotted him over 5ft several times, so I knew he could do it."

[@EquestrianFool]

That is craaaaazy! What a horse!!

[@ImmortalSynn]

Well, on a related note... he does hold the N.American 6Bar-record. I remember seeing him schooling for it: he was clearing 6'9", and still hanging his legs over that. It was friggin' INCREDIBLE!

[@mckennarules9]

the rider is young yet great! and the horse is beautiful and talented - not even bucking or refusing!

[@ibsunnysha]

Tomboy will always be one of the horse's remembered...Such power! And this was a great ride!

[@Sniffysmyboy]

Its almost like a stag jump! I'm watching the hind end the whole time, its amazing!

[@kingforagreenday5872]

and using a hackamore amazing!

[@HorseSensation]

I love jumping!! This years WEG is going to be awesome!!

[@ImmortalSynn]

@cocomango5189 Tomboy did sometimes run afoul of time faults, as you can clearly see in his "heartbreak" video, where he missed the jumpoff for the Olympic medals by 1/4th of a second. However, he also had an ENORMOUS stride, and that really helped. It was very deceiving: he looks like he's just ambling along for a canter in the countryside, but he actually covered a tremendous amount of ground... which served to mitigate the time lost by his big jump.

[@ImmortalSynn]

...indeed. And even then, the only time he ever *has* to, is when he gets himself in too deep of a spot. Height never forces him to tuck: as mentioned before, he jumped 6'9" to win the Alberta Power 6Bar, and he didn't even bother to tuck his legs over that! Was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen in showjumping, and I'm trying like hell to find that tape so I can post it. I have trillions, lol

[@ImmortalSynn]

as a colt, he fell down a hill and hurt his back... he made a full physical recovery, but psychologically, it made him reluctant to use it... which is part of the reason he jumps so flatly, and chooses to utilize his raw power over efficient form, to clear obstacles-- though, he's proven several times that he can round out quite nicely, when he wants to.

[@DJDangersJessiJane]

I wish I had been old enough to see this on the tv when it first came out. I would have been hitting the floor with my jaw at that horse's powerful jump! Incredible!

[@baaiegooed]

What a fabulous animal! Horses at this level *are* freaks- and they do it because they are athletes and they love the game. You can't get that kind of performance at that height and level without willingness, and it obviously took someone as amazingly talented as RP to figure out how to ride that successfully. People like to show how much they know by critiquing, but there kind of isn't anything to criticize here. Watch clips of RP on Baloubet- also an incredibly hard ride, but what a team!

[@daanzluvdeg]

Lol looking pissed makes me think of a pony at our stable's, when she jumps she looks exactly like this horse but she is concentrated at that moment and only thinks of jumping :D

[@luluvlogs2471]

daanzluvdeg They aint angry, their listening to their owner

[@user-wc4xm5jo5d]

This horse is just incredible to watch. His jumping style makes it look like he's literally flying!

[@ImmortalSynn]

@dreamernsaihung Who knows. The highest I've ever seen him jump was 6'9" in competition, to win the Alberta Power 6Bar.

[@ImmortalSynn]

...incredibly well-said. Thank you.

[@skipsrose]

This video brings back good memories. I was there that day and Brazil had their own little cheering section and they were so excited. They were a few rows behind me.

[@ImmortalSynn]

Every now and then you'll see one that does it... not quite to this level, but close. One that immediately pops to mind was It's Otto, ridden by Geoff Billington. That horse ~soared~ above every fence, and in fact competed in these same Olympics-- making it all the way to the jumpoff.

[@ImmortalSynn]

Maximum height: 5'3" Maximum spread: 6'6"

[@ajpebbles]

I was just trying to find that clip. it was over the double liverpool oxers at the entrance to the intl' ring. He put his legs through both oxers and Rodrigo was riding so hard and they somehow managed to come out clean. It was amazing! Sprucemeadows did this thing on FSN about Rodrigo and if I remember correctly the horse actually broke something in his withers. It was a pretty catastrophic injury

[@WarHorse16]

Now that is an impressive horse! Looking at his build, I was pretty sceptical at first, but there's no denying that Tomboy is a true powerhouse! A well deserved placing. :)

[@MyBeautifulAnthony]

i love the design of the course

[@Simplyblissfull]

The announcer is definetly right... he leaves his front legs loose and in turn uses power to clear the jumps, instead of the regular tucked and neat form.

[@queenoftartan]

I've never seen this horse jump before. That's such an unusual jumping style, I really wasn't expecting that as they approached the first jump. Great round!

[@EquineLover123]

holy crap, He doesnt even come CLOSE to touching the jumps O.O OMG,.....! these guys are friggen ridiculous!! *jaw drops*

[@SparkyArtz]

Good God that horse is a beast with invisible wings!

[@riminiiipartygirl]

i swear...this horse is out of controllll!!! amazing really!!! thank uuuu

[@ImmortalSynn]

...that'd be the understatement of the century.

[@ImmortalSynn]

When I heard about Gem Twist being cloned, immediately my thoughts went to Tomboy... I always wondered what it'd be like to raise a Tomboy clone... particularly seeing how that horse would jump, seeing as it wouldn't have suffered Tomboy's original injury.

[@ImmortalSynn]

Also, FYI for those who may not know... Coevers is L.P.Tomboy's sire.

[@FromWishingDreams]

Good god! That horse is a beast!

[@jen4dougie4eva]

'I've trotted him over 5ft a couple times' Of course, as you do!! And to think Rodrigo was a young rider when he did this, looking at riders these days I'm not sure how many of them would be able to ride this horse and keep their equitation. Beautiful!

[@2101lovelilly]

props to rodrigo for even staying on i rode a horse who like to jump like this but over small jumps (50cm) and i almost fall off, but this high Rodrigo definetley has some skill

[@ImmortalSynn]

...thing is, I've never SEEN such a time. As I've said many times before, this horse holds the North American 6Bar record, by jumping 6'9" (2.06m) in the Alberta Power 6Bar.... and he didn't even bother tucking over THAT!

[@8Happy81]

INSANE horse!

[@ImmortalSynn]

...if that's the case, then you'll LOVE the next one of him I plan to put up. He kicks his legs out HARD in the middle of a triple combination, just explosively. Very cool to see.

[@hollypalmer95]

that horse is absolutely amazing!!!! and that course is huge! its so long!

[@ImmortalSynn]

K, after about 4 comments asking the same question... allow me to answer it for you. When he was a very young colt, he fell off of a hillside and injured his back. He made a 100% recovery, but it made him reluctant to use it... despite the fact that he's shown he can, when he actually wants to. As such, when he jumps, he chooses not just use his power instead of of a basculed classic form, to get him over the fences. Apparently, it works for him...

[@DayAtThePegsusCentre]

Wow, such a lovely scope and jump. Clearing those jumps in style.

[@ImmortalSynn]

@HorseSensation Agree 100%. And according to Horse Illustrated, it's supposed to have an unusually high amount of TV coverage from mainstream networks... which would certainly be new and refreshing, for non-racing horse sports!

[@ImmortalSynn]

@SparkleGrl123 It's an optical illusion. 1) he's not movingly slowly at all. Again, this horse has an *enormous* stride: he's moving faster than the average horse just based on the amount of ground he covers with each step he takes. 2) he tends to lunge the jumps a bit, Rodrigo has to work to keep his front end off the fences. That's what you're seeing, not necessarily speed.

[@lizamads1]

amazing round right there.

[@margaretchapman276]

That first jump is HUGE!

[@ImmortalSynn]

...indeed. I'm trying like heck to find the tape of him winning the Alberta Power 6-Bar, so I can post it here. He jumped 6ft 9inches, after clearing several smaller fences in front of it, for the win. He cleared the final jump in his usual fashion: plenty of air!

[@Steffiklein]

THIS horse is special! :O

[@SilverSky333]

I want to laugh every time he jumps... I've never seen a horse jump like that. It's so weird, but I can see the power!

[@blackmagic1234567891]

his ears are flat against his head. glad to see he does not take out his distate on his jumping!

[@Lemonnyx]

its the fact that in showjumping u want speed as well as jumping high. Tomboy is very scopey which means he spends a lot of time in the air, taking up valuable time he also does not keep his front end as tight as it really should be.

[@Dunreiner]

Holy cow!! That horse has some major power!!

[@MsDovima]

My God! This horse is Pegasus!

[@AdrenalineArt]

I would have loved to see this horse in a puissance competition just to see how small he could make it look ;) I love how the crowd gasps at #1 haha xx

[@ImmortalSynn]

Rails usually weren't the problem... his nemesis was time faults. Because he jumps with such power, he (obviously) hangs in the air. The thing is, even if he only does that for 1/2 of a second, that's still 8 seconds of additional time he's gotta make up for over a typical 16-jump course. The fact that he's got an ENORMOUS stride did help, but if you see one of the other videos of him here ("LP Tomboy: Heartbreak"), you can see that he missed the Olympic jumpoff by a ONE second time fault!

[@ImmortalSynn]

@Ingridoganette The heights are at FEI maxima: Verticals are 1.60m (5ft 3in). Oxers are same height, with a spread up to 2.0m (6ft 6in).

[@ImmortalSynn]

@KarleneAnnxoxo13 He's registered as an ISH, even though he's 3/4 TB.

[@Ragrobsz5643]

does that horse EVER knock a rail hes amazing he clears everything by a mile

[@alayasugata6279]

ok, how many people noticed the horses form jumping, and how many notoced the horses pinned ears?

[@XxhorsesAmandaxX]

i noticed that too...

[@DAYBREAKandFREEDOM]

yeah it does look like he isent enjoying himself, but this horse just has his ears back out of concentration. he loves his job and his rider.

[@caitlynlochore9486]

He definitely didn't look happy... most horses would have thier ears forward because tey love thier job. This can certainly jump but he didn't look like he wanted to

[@DAYBREAKandFREEDOM]

not all horses keep their ears forward. i have one that absoutely loves jumping, always gets very excited when she sees the jumps in the arena, but jumps with her ears back. its just her typical face. please dont comment on a horse u dont personally know. thanks

[@alayasugata6279]

wow! you know Loro Piana Tomboy? that's awesome!

[@HannahK126]

wow!!! imagin havein a go on tht beast hes absaloutly stunning done the job AMAZINGLY. Must of came off the best 2 horses and had the best trainer in the world to come out with a result like that!!!! Amazed!!!

[@10851142]

pessoa is my idol...no more words..ive got a pessoa saddle too amd i aspire for being the next sensation..jeje, im not being cocky...im from honduras and made it to the honduran national team...and now im in usa...maybe this spring i will go into brown's equestrian team and see what they can offer me

[@kikiza123]

lol the horse looks so angry but he puts so much effort into everything

[@luluvlogs2471]

AnnaOverThere Hes not angry, his ears are back, hes listening to his rider

[@ImmortalSynn]

@4evadressage Could be any number of reasons, though I'd suspect he's just the type of horse who pins at you whenever you apply any manner of leg/hand aids. I'd also be willing to bet it's more the latter than the former, as he used to be even more finicky when Rodrigo used to ride him with a bit instead of a hackamore.

[@ImmortalSynn]

..."they" did. Read some of the other comments here-- I've mentioned several times how he won the Alberta Power 6Bar by clearing the 6ft 9in final fence with RIDICULOUS ease!

[@salty246]

wowii,that horse jumps huge!

[@Jezzie2062]

Wow he is amazing! ive never seen a horse jump like that before, absolut amazing. thanks

[@EquestrianPride16]

Wow. He's incredible.