Oh yeah right, that's what it was. What was the reason for that again though?
I think it was going to explained in the cancelled Dreamcast game that was going to have Sonia Belmont appear in it. Currently, it isn't actually explained in any of the Castlevania games.
Anyways, the canon of the Castlevania games is a complete mess, so I wouldn't put much stock in it. Iga's canon actually retconned which century the original Castlevania took place in, so it wasn't really built on a solid foundation. It also seems rather arbitrary (and potentially petty).
In any case, I am a fan of the original: Simon Belmont. To be honest, I have been somewhat soured on Richter thanks to how often he showed up in some of the more modern Castlevanias, such as the choice to have him be the biggest Belmont cameo in Portrait of Ruin.
Gabriel Belmont grew on me across Lords of Shadow, too. I haven't played LoS2 yet, though, so it is possible that the character could be ruined for me as well.