Defenders of the Chaco

In the “Alonso de Ercilla” Hall of the National Library, the Chilean Rodeo Federation presented the book “75 years Champion of Chile”, written by journalist Marcelo Simonetti and which covers the history and anecdotes of the 74 winners that the National Rodeo Championship, which was held for the first time in 1949.

With the presence of the board of directors of the Chilean Rodeo Federation, headed by its president Francisco Infante Rogers, the launch of this work was carried out, which is within the framework of the dispute for the seventy-fifth Champion of Chile, which begins this Thursday and ends on Sunday in the Monumental Crescent of Rancagua “Gonzalo Vial Vial”.

The 166-page book covers history from 1949, when Ernesto Santos and José Gutiérrez, in Bototo and Vanidosa, won the first Chilean Champion until the latest version in 2023, which was won by Cristóbal Cortina and Gonzalo Abarca in Abundante and Timbero.

It also covers the 9 times that Juan Carlos Loaiza was crowned champion and the 7 opportunities that Ramón Cardemil and Eduardo Tamayo shined. Or when Claudio and Rufino Hernández won with a record in Rancagua by winning with 48 good points.

In this regard, Francisco Infante Rogers commented that this is “a book that we designed for this 75th National Championship, which accompanies the Cup, and which illustrates all the national champions; I think it is a nice memory that all corraleros should have. We have to return to our roots, respecting our sport as it was born. I invite everyone to purchase the book and enjoy it.”

For his part, Edmundo Hermosilla Hermosilla, vice president of the Federation, said that “we must thank the National Library for welcoming us and allowing us to launch here. The History of Chile is written here. The Chilean rodeo wanted to be here and they welcomed us very well; This book collects the story of all our Chilean Champions on Sunday afternoons, told in an entertaining way and beyond statistics, so that it remains in the history of Chile. “We wanted to leave a testimony, a memory of what has happened.”

Meanwhile, the author Marcelo Simonetti indicated that “the book gives an account of each of the Chilean Champions, from 1949 to date. What we try to do is tell the story of each of those finals in the most vivid way possible, trying to rescue not so well-known stories that allow the reader to relive those moments and realize that behind each triumph there is an intimate epic, an effort collective, a personal struggle that, in most cases, exceeds the boundaries of the crescent.”

He added that “the book is full of epic moments such as the definition of the 1976 Chilean Champion, which was only defined after three tiebreaker animals were disputed between the Vergara and González colleras and that of De la Fuente and Rey or the incredible victory for Pozo and Meza, in 2016: they needed to make a perfect race on the last bull to be champions and they made a perfect race. I think that for rodeo lovers this book is going to become a collector’s item and the certain possibility of reliving the most emotional episodes of corralera history.”

Finally, the executive director of Santiago 2023, Harold Mayne-Nicholls, who was present at the National Library, said that “I have no doubt that here is, in some way, a follow-up of what the last 75 years have been like in our country.” in the most traditional, most classic and most Chilean sport such as rodeo. In addition, there is an incredible effervescence of people, because many people arrive from all over the country and generate a very positive and traditional atmosphere that is very good for all our rural, peasant and sports activities.

It should be noted that “75 Years Champion of Chile” can be acquired during the development of the 2024 National Rodeo Championship.