While Daniel Sarango contested the 2025 Bolivarian Games in Lima, Peru, with Icarus de Chatsworth DS, he could clearly hear a voice in his head, cheering, “Go Daddy!”
While his young daughter Alejandrina had been unable to travel from their home in Chatsworth, GA, she was there in spirit, giving instructions and support through FaceTime. Daniel describes his daughter as his inspiration and motivation, and in Peru, he certainly felt her presence as he tackled his first team championship, where he helped his native Ecuador to the team gold medal.
“This gold medal isn’t mine alone,” he told us after he returned home. “It belongs to God, to my family, to my team, and to every person who ever extended their hand to me. It’s an emotion I still can’t fully describe. Sometimes I stop and think about the 7-year-old boy who watched his first horse show on a black-and-white television, and I feel like I’m living that little boy’s dream. It was my first time competing in a team championship after a lifetime of riding alone, and hearing the anthem, seeing the flag, it felt as if my heart had returned to Ecuador for a moment.”
While Daniel had big goals for the Bolivarian Games — he hopes it’s the first step towards the 2027 Pan American Games in Lima, and after that the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games — he felt that even competing in the Games made him a winner regardless of the final results.
“The most important thing for me was Icarus’ wellbeing and continuing to learn together,” he said. “With a strategic plan for the team, Icarus went first in the competition, consequently putting pressure on the other teams because of his talent and abilities.”
Daniel was able to travel to Peru on the plane with Icarus, keeping an eye on how the gelding handled his first international trip. Once in Peru, they joined their teammates Carlos Narvaez on Quincy O’Brown, Diego Zurita on Lessy and Jorge Aguilar on Pats Jester as the pathfinder for the team.
Photo courtesy of Daniel Sarango.
They scored a 41.3 in dressage and added just 2 time penalties on cross-country to finish on a 43.3 and help the team take the gold medal. Individually Daniel and Icarus were fourth, just behind an all Ecuadorian podium. Zurita took gold, Aguilar silver, and Ronald Zabala Goetschel, who rode Forever Young Wundermaske as an individual, won bronze.
“Icarus arrived in Peru like a true professional, as if he already had years of international experience,” said Daniel. “As always, he was like a playful, curious child—full of energy and ready to compete. He is very similar to his father. When they enter the arean and they want to show themselves and give their best.”
Daniel has a unique bond with the 7-year-old Silla Francesca (LOL – Frenchie) having bred the gelding himself. His breeding program is small, with just two to three foals per year from his own stock of broodmares and stallions who’ve been selected for their exceptional bloodlines, good characteristics and strong genes.
“Breeding Icarcus has been one of the most beautiful experiences of my life,” he said. “When we did the ultrasound and saw that Frenchie was pregnant, something in my soul whispered, ‘This foal will be special.’ One the day he was born, he was on his feet in less than five minutes. I looked at him and thought, ‘God has a plan for you.’ Since then, every day has been a lesson in patience, humility and love for the horse. Horses teach you to listen, to wait, to trust. They don’t speak, but they feel everything. Icarus has taught me far more than I could ever teach him.”
Photo courtesy of Daniel Sarango.
With a bond forged from the moment Icarcus opened his eyes, he and Daniel have a strong partnership. The flashy chestnut gelding started his career in the in-hand and young horse classes with strong results. He now competes at the two-star level in eventing, finishing fourth in The Fork at Tryon CCI2*-L. He also competes in show jumping and has a recent win in the $2,500 Welcome Stakes at the Bill Russell Memorial in Georgia.
Show jumping was Daniel’s first competitive foray into equestrian sport, and he added eventing to his resume in 2010 and has continued doing both sports since then, believing that the technical aspect has made him a stronger competitor, and he feels it has benefited Icarus as well.
“Since he is still young, it benefits him to experience different environments and develop more confidence,” he said.
Daniel describes representing Ecuador at the Bolivarian Games as an unforgettable experience that gave him lifelong friends, and one he couldn’t have accomplished without a host of people who have supported him along the way, from his trainers and veterinarians to his friends and family.
“Success is never individual,” he said. “It is always a reflection of the good people standing beside you.”
