Some riders remain within their chosen discipline for life. Juan Diego García Trevijano competed at the Olympic level in show jumping then made a choice few would understand: he left that world entirely to dedicate himself to classical dressage and haute école. Not because jumping failed him: he recognised where true mastery lived.

Born in Spain in 1965, Juan Diego's early path led to Olympic show jumping. His partnership with Tirol carried him to the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games, where he earned an Olympic Diploma, a distinction reserved for finalists demonstrating exceptional skill on the world's most demanding stage. The following year, that same partnership took him to third place at the 1989 World Cup Final in Tampa, cementing his reputation amongst international elite. In 1986, riding Futuro, he secured second place at the Rome Grand Prix, proving his ability to partner successfully with multiple horses at championship levels.

But even during those competitive years, something else called to him. Classical equitation and haute école represented, as he sees it, the pinnacle of the equestrian pyramid. Whilst jumping worked with what he terms "elemental impulsion", classical work demanded academic impulsion, united with suppleness, seeking not relative balance but absolute equilibrium. The principles were universal, the art more complete.

As a young competitor, Juan Diego was already working Spanish walk and other airs during his jumping career. At the 1989 World Cup Final rest day in the United States, he worked Tirol in hand, refining movements that went far beyond what the competition required. It raised eyebrows. For Juan Diego, it was simply logical evolution.

His transition from Olympic show jumping to classical dressage wasn't rebellion against one discipline but recognition of where his deepest interest lay: the equitation de l'école, where technical precision transforms into artistic expression. Piaffe, passage, Spanish walk, levade, the movements requiring years of patient development, where horse and rider achieve unity indistinguishable from dance. This was mastery beyond sport. This was art.

For years, Juan Diego performed haute école exhibitions at the show jumping competitions he attended and at other equestrian events, bringing classical artistry to audiences accustomed to speed and height. These performances weren't separate from his competitive work, they ran parallel, revealing what always mattered most: giving the horse maximum brilliance, whether over fences or in collected movement.

Now based in Spain, Juan Diego dedicates his expertise to teaching riders worldwide what decades at sport's pinnacle and years in classical study revealed: that the principles of good equitation are universal. Great masters across classical schools, whether Spanish, French or German, share fundamental truths that only rivalry between traditions has prevented from being fully recognised. When training respects these principles, it serves the horse first, performance second and when done correctly, both flourish.