Gianni Govoni started to ride when he was just ten years old and rode in his first international show when he was still a teenager. Nicknamed the Master of Faster, emphasising his main characteristic and unmistakeable way of getting his horses to gallop so fast they are often unbeatable, Govoni followed in his father’s and uncle’s footsteps and has always been phenomenal in his technique, knowledge, dedication, sacrifice, hard work and above all his talent. 

He did not like school and so his father put him to work with horses saying that “He rode a lot of horses, lots!” Govoni was gifted from the very start and his talent was noticed by Raimondo d’Inzeo when he rode at Piazza di Siena and this changed many things. At the time Raimondo was the team coach and spoke to Gianni’s father in no uncertain terms, asking him whether he intended to allow his son to use all that talent to become a real rider (under his supervision), or whether he wanted him to continue to be just a dealer. So Gianni joined the group of riders considered of interest to the federation and based at the Pratoni del Vivaro, near Rome, where Raimondo d’Inzeo managed to channel all that talent at a competitive level. The great coach Henk Nooren, acknowledged as one of the best in the world, completed the job. He once said about Gianni that, “Every time he enters the arena it is to break every possible record...”