Naldo Dasso

Born in the town of Embajador Martini, Naldo Dasso’s father Vicente was a three-time mayor of the town. Naldo pursued a career in the military and dovetailed it with his passion and ability for show jumping and in 1956 was a member of the Argentine team that competed at the Olympics and finished fourth in the team event. Argentina went to the Rome Olympics four years later as one of the favourites for the team prize after winning the Nations Cup, Aga Khan Trophy for the first time at the Royal Dublin Horse Show, with Dasso participating one month before the Games. where Lieutenant Dasso was accompanied by two of the Aga Khan Trophy winning team: Carlos D’Elia and Jorge Lucardi. Dasso finished joint seventh in the individual event but poor performances in the team competition four days later meant that Argentina was not classified.

Dasso found notoriety in later life during the civil military dictatorship in Argentina in the 1970s when he was a general in the Concordia Army. He was later found guilty of crimes against humanity and of conspiracy, illegal raids on homes, illegal deprivation of liberty and enforced disappearance of two militants. He was sentenced to life imprisonment in January 2013. At the trial, Dasso was described by the judge as a cowardly repressor, not a soldier.