T R A I N I N G
R I N A L D O
L O N G U I N I
by Mary Kirkman With Rinaldo Longuini’s reputation as one of Brazil’s most successful trainers and his considerable achievements internationally, it would be natural to assume that he grew up around horses—that his equine background extends to his childhood and informs his work. In fact, his success is due to his own natural talent, the tutelage of a few accomplished horsemen during the critical start-up of his career, and the good fortune of beginning at Haras Capim Fino, where owner Polé Levy is known for offering opportunities to rising young stars. Longuini was 20 when he first visited Haras Capim Fino in December, 1986. A native of Jaú, about 190 miles northwest of São Paulo, he grew up on a dairy farm and attended college, but confesses that school was not a passion. At the time, he was playing a lot of soccer with his friends and working in the shoe manufacturing industry; it was not until he visited his thenbrother-in-law, trainer Zeze Rodrigues, at Haras Capim Fino that he was introduced to horses. Longuini was intrigued by what he saw, and a week later accepted an entry-level job at the influential Arabian operation. “I didn’t know anything about horses; I had to figure out which halters to use,” he recalls. But the pastoral atmosphere was not unfamiliar to him. “I grew up like this. I have farming 40 | AR ABIAN HORSE TIMES
in my blood.” In the beginning, he mucked stalls, cared for broodmares—did whatever needed to be done—and drove the horse van that took the show string to horse shows. “I liked the competition, the people, the movement, the sales, everything,” he says, “and Polé gave me a chance to learn.” Guided by Rodrigues, he absorbed the basics of schooling horses, and graduated to preparing many of the Haras Capim Fino horses for the ring. It was 1987; that year, he reached two milestones—he married Adriana Cristina Defende and he showed his first horses for Haras Capim Fino. So many Arabians and Half-Arabians were in training there for owner Polé Levy and his clients that Levy allowed Longuini to compete with his personal string. It was not long before Longuini showed client horses as well; for several years, he was part of a team that routinely brought home the highest ribbons at the Brazilian Nationals. It was inevitable that he would eventually seek new challenges, however, and in 1994, with Levy’s blessing and encouragement, he became the trainer and handler for Paulo Machado’s Hafati. At the Brazilian Nationals that year, American Bob Locke observed Longuini working his new show stars, and commented on the trainer’s