Among the stars of the Three Drums at the Jaguariúna Rodeo Festival, which starts this Friday (26), is the two-time champion Ana Carolina Cardozo, who, along with her partner, the horse Cromo, is going in search of the third consecutive championship and will have a special competitor: daughter Maria Eduarda.
The first qualifiers of the only female event at the party started this Friday. From them, come the semifinals, which compete for places in the final at night, when the Red Eventos complex will be full after the suspension due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Amazon from Araraquara (SP) is the type that “was born mounted on horses”. At 35, he dedicates 32 of them to the sport for which he accumulates trophies. Even with a vast résumé of victories, they remain humble, are surprised by the nickname of favorite and confess to butterflies in their stomachs for the start of the heats.
“Every competition gives butterflies in my stomach. I’m a person of great faith and I pray a lot, in the first place, so that nothing bad happens”, he told g1.
For Ana Carolina, who won one of the stages at the Festa de Peão de Barretos in August, in competitions with many competitors anything can happen. “I have a very good horse, I’m experienced, but I’m not pretentious,” she added.
chrome the good fellow
The horse Cromo Down Jet WA has been with the rider for 13 years and together they form the set for the Three Drums for almost a decade. Keeping him in shape, however, demands being treated with all the pampering of a partner and the care of an athlete. “He is a special horse, very healthy, he has never had serious injuries and we have been competing at a high level for a long time. He has a picket line just for him, lives loose and does what he likes”, he said.
She also said that special nutrition with supplements is necessary to maintain the good health of the partner, as the group has a very active and, consequently, exhausting career. “Almost every weekend I’m competing. I try to schedule myself to give him time off, so he can rest, but sometimes there’s no way and I go with him two weekends in a row”, he explained.
public heat
Open-door rodeo with public feedback will be the main differential for the participants, who passed the Covid-19 pandemic with tests in studs. “I much prefer rodeo, it was needed. There’s adrenaline, the crowd’s heat, it’s much more glamorous and tastier,” he said.
Despite the excitement, she prefers to be cautious and hesitates to the signs that point her as the favorite for the grand prix in Jaguariúna. “Favorite? Wow, what an honor for me. But I think it will be very competitive, with a lot of athletes, because it’s been almost two years since we’ve competed in rodeos. The girls will be with all their vigor, “watered” for proof. You have the impression that this one is going to be very strong”, he said.
united family
As a child, with only three years old, Ana Carolina was already in the arenas of Brazilian rodeos, always accompanied and encouraged by Wilson Dante Laurini Jr., her trainer. He was also one of those responsible for introducing the Três Tambores to the little girl, when he was president of the Sociedade Hípica de Araraquara, of which he is one of the founders. “There I had the opportunity to get to know the sport and fall in love. I never stopped”, said Ana, remembering that at the time she competed with a tame mare, called Pomba.
Time passed and the next generation continues the legacy. Today, she is the one who trains her daughter, Maria Eduarda, aged 17, who will compete in the same category in this edition of the Jaguariúna rodeo. “I am angry and critical of her. Maria Eduarda is very good. We get along very well. Now that we compete in the same category, we root for each other, we point out the mistakes, where we could improve”, he revealed.
In the last edition of the Jaguariúna rodeo, in 2019, Ana Carolina classified with the shortest time 16,124 for the main category, the Gold Race, and Maria Eduarda was the best in the Silver Race, with 16,139. This year, they will be together in the main event, which will not be held as a stage, that is, it is not part of the National Association of Three Drums (ANTT) season circuit, although it has its seal.
Track suitable for receiving the stars
In the Três Tambores event, it is essential that the arena track is very well prepared to receive the sets. To maintain quality, the vice president of the National Association of Three Drums (ANTT) Graziella Agnes participated with the team in the entire process, from soil preparation to test management. “A good track is the secret of a good race. If the rodeo offers a safe and fast track, it makes the competitors manage to obtain lower times and safety for the group”, he said.
According to the specialist, the main stars will be present in this competition and will have the association’s seal. “The expectation among the competitors is huge, as they will return to compete in a rodeo arena with the presence of the public after practically two years. The magic of competing in front of the audience, with the vibration, the support, is certainly very different and we can expect a great competition.”
Three Drums in Jaguariúna
At least 99 competitors are enrolled in the female category, in addition to the child category (up to 12 years old). It works as follows. The qualifiers started this Friday and will continue on Saturday, at 11am, with live broadcast by SGP
On the first day, the 15 semi-finalists compete at night, starting at 9 pm. Of these, rank the top five finalists, who added the best times, qualifying and semi. Those who didn’t qualify, have one more chance in Saturday morning’s qualifier, of which 15 will go to the semi and added up to the other five for the final. Thus, the grand final has 10 competitors, on Saturday at 9 pm.
The total prize for this edition is R$ 32 thousand, being R$ 8 thousand for the champion, R$ 6 thousand for the runner-up, R$ 5 for the third place, R$ 3.5 thousand for the fourth, R$ 2 thousand for fifth and R$ 1.5 thousand for sixth to tenth place.