His entire life was marked by an enormous love for horses and equestrian sport. Unfortunately he died as a result of a fall while riding a horse. With his disappearance, Spanish sport lost a true master of horsemanship. For many the best Spanish rider of all time.
His childhood and training
Jaime García-Cruz was born in Madrid in 1910. From a very young age he was attracted to the world of horses, especially when his father Agustín García Goyoaga shared with his brother Pedro a riding stable in the capital, he is therefore the first cousin of our also famous rider Paco Goyoaga.
At the age of 18 he entered the General Military Academy, from which four years later he would emerge as a Cavalry Lieutenant. He was number one in the class of 1942 at the Army Riding School, where he would join as a teacher shortly after.
He was a teacher of those who would later be very relevant contestants: Alonso Martín, Gazapo, Valencia, Queipo de Llano, Martínez de Vallejo... Practically most of his life was dedicated to the School; as a cavalry officer, as a horseman and as a master teacher.
The national team
It didn't take long for him to join the national team and his successes didn't take long to come either. In 1947, a year before the London Olympics, he broke in Bilbao, jumping 2.22 meters, the Spanish record for height with the Irish horse, a gray horse specializing in Bengali powers, a record that has not been It was surpassed until this year 2000 by Josechu Verdugo, therefore Jaime García-Cruz's record was in force for 53 years.
It is around this time that the Spanish army buys very good horses in Ireland every year from which military riders obtain exceptional performance.
The London Olympics
In 1948, Jaime García Cruz was among the riders who represented Spain at the London Olympic Games. His teammates were Lieutenant Colonel Navarro and Commander Gavilán.
García-Cruz competed in London riding Bizarro and managed to place fifth in the individual classification (best Olympic classification for Spanish riders), in which Mariles (Mexico) won the gold medal. In the team classification, Spain took second place, thus obtaining the silver medal behind Mexico.
The Quorum Horse
After this Olympics Jaime rides Quorum due to an injury to his usual rider Navarro. An excellent horse of French origin that was, until the army bought it in 1951, the property of José Navarro, although later, and until the aforementioned injury, he continued riding it.
With this horse, García-Cruz, he won two second prizes individually in Wite City (London) and also a second prize for teams in the competition that today would be equivalent to the Nations Cup. It was with this same horse that his cousin and friend Paco Goyoaga would win the World Championship in Paris 1954.
Other horses of Jaime García Cruz
Apart from the already mentioned Bengalí and Quorum, Jaime also rode a very winning horse, the German Quoniam, who with an unorthodox style (he did not use the neck correctly) won numerous powers as well as international tests, including the Rome Grand Prix1950.
Eolo IV, son of the famous Furioso, was another famous horse of García Cruz. With this French horse, which he rode with the reins in the noseband, he competed in the internationals in Nice and Rome when he was only five years old. Later Eolo was also ridden very well by Alfonso Queipo de Llano, winning numerous Grand Prix and Power Awards with him. Enrique Martínez de Vallejo rode it in the Tokyo Olympics.
A serious injury
In 1953 he suffered a serious fall while training at the Riding School. The injuries caused by this fall kept him in complete and absolute rest for almost ten months. In 1954 he would receive the reward of that serious injury, being his best year of performance both individually and as a team.
Great sporting career: Spain and abroad
The year 1956 will be the last year for Jaime that he would go abroad to compete, but in Spain his activity continued. In the six years that García-Cruz was part of the Spanish team, he won numerous prestigious trophies: he was part of the winning team in seven Nations Cups and won seventeen first prizes in competitions international.
He participated in international competitions in the United States, Mexico and Chile with great success. In 1954 with Goyoaga and Ordovás they made a "tour" of the United States and Canada where they triumphed on countless occasions. On these transatlantic trips Jaime traveled on the ship with the horses accompanied by the unconditional Isidoro Manero.
A very sad death, always remembered
The pages of the history of horse riding are marked with mourning on May 16, 1959. This day, Jaime was participating in the national competition in Valladolid with the mare Nákar. After making two refusals, the third attempt was even more unsuccessful: mare and rider fell to the ground. Nákar crushed Jaime García-Cruz and nothing could be done to save his life.
On May 16, 1959, one of the best riders that the equestrian sport has seen in our country died, a rider still well remembered today for having been an excellent contestant, a great professor and an unbeatable teacher. A rider full of skills who practiced very good horse riding. A great fan, great connoisseur and great lover of horses.
A story flavored with triumphs but full of nostalgia for Spanish and world horsemanship.
