Dr. Cesar Parra

Introduction to Dr. Parra

Dr. Cesar Parra began giving clinics at Knollwood Farm in the Spring of 2005.  He is very motivated and enjoys helping good riders reach their potential in the competition ring.  He is great fun to watch as an auditor, because his fixes create such a dramatic improvement in the appearance and way of going of the horses.  The best riders for this clinic will be ambitious and have aspirations for FEI competition.

Dr. Cesar Parra, a highly driven and enthusiastic person, grew up in Bogotá, the capital city of Colombia in South America.  He earned his Doctor of Science of Dentistry degree with a specialty in Pediatric Dentistry and came to the United States in 1983 to attend Continuing Education classes at Harvard.  The following year he attended Boston University.  From 1985 to 1987, he taught Pediatric Dentistry at Boston University.  Dr. Parra returned to Bogotá in 1987 to continue his practice as a dentist.

As a stress relief from his work, he started riding again, a sport he had participated in as a child.  He initially was drawn to show jumping, but when he discovered dressage, he never looked back, and since 1995 he has been a popular and successful competitor and trainer on the international scene.

Since 1995, Dr. Cesar Parra's has been an international dressage rider.  In 1999 he won individual silver at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada aboard the Holsteiner Cinbad.  In 2002, he represented Colombia with PF Robinson at the World Equestrian Games in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.  In 2003 Parra placed fourth at the Pan American Games in the Dominican Republic aboard Pik L.  Dr. Cesar Parra competed at the 2004 CDIO Aachen with Pik L and Galant du Serein and showed as individual rider for Columbia at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens with Galant du Serein.  He has been a multiple winner at national and international shows in the United States taking highest honors at Dressage at Devon, and CDI Wellington.

In 1996 Cesar began the first of his regularly scheduled training sessions to Europe to work with some of the sport's true luminaries including Herbert Rehbein, Hans Rueben and currently Hubertus Schmidt.  He learned the classical training system, which emphasized the importance of building a proper foundation.  "There are no shortcuts in correct training," Cesar said. "All of our work in Europe followed the training scale: rhythm, suppleness, contact, impulsion, straightness and collection.  You cannot skip any steps."

Cesar's intensive studying paid off in a very short period of time.  He won the FEI World Challenge twice and was the 1999 Champion in the Wartebach Cup in Germany.  In 1999, he returned to Columbia to lead his team to a Team Silver Medal at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada.  For his efforts Cesar was named Colombian Athlete of the year and achieved instant celebrity status.  Unfortunately his international athletic success and fame made Cesar and his family a target for the Colombian guerillas.  Receiving "elite athlete" status from the United States Embassy, Cesar and his wife Marcela and their two children moved to the United States and eventually formed Piaffe Performance Farm, a training stable dedicated to the education of horse and rider.

For more information on Dr. Parra, please visit www.piaffe-performance.com.