This morning, the Tarragona rider Albert Cabestany announced his retirement as a professional trial rider after 22 seasons.
Albert Cabestany has been one of the most important pilots in the world during these more than 2 decades, and his track record proves it:
– Indoor Trial World Champion 2002
– 9 wins and 84 podiums at the Outdoor World Championships
– 18 wins and 72 podiums at the World Indoor Championships
– 8 times Indoor Trial World Runner-up
– 5 times Third in the Indoor Trial World Championship
– 3 times Third in the Outdoor Trial World Championship
– 15 times World Champion for Outdoor Nations
– 10 times World Champion for Indoor Nations
– 3 times Spanish Indoor Champion
– Spanish Outdoor Champion 2002
– German Indoor Champion 2013
– European Runner-up 1998
– 1 victory and 4 podiums in the European Championships
Albert Cabestany is a rider well known by all Trial fans, not only for his experience or track record, but also for his exquisite technical quality and being one of the few riders capable of putting Toni Bou or Adam Raga in trouble. Albert made his debut in the World Championship during the ’97 season at the controls of a Beta; the brand with which he has achieved his greatest success – Indoor World Champion and Spanish Outdoor & Indoor Champion 2002 – and the consolidation as one of the best riders in the world.
Between those years he briefly wore the colors of Gas Gas in 1999, but the really important change at the team level came in 2005, when Sherco hired his services. Therefore, Albert is also a key player in the development of the production bike, whose significant evolution in recent years keeps it as one of the most popular motorcycles on the market.
TEAMS HE HAS COMPETED FOR
> Beta (1997-1998)
> Gas Gas (1999)
> Beta (2000-2004)
> Sherco (2005-2017)
> Beta (present)
BIOGRAPHY OF ALBERT CABESTANY
Albert Cabestany was born in Tarragona. From a very young age he was attracted to two wheels, and at the age of five he began to compete on a bicycle in trials events, proclaiming himself runner-up in the world championship in the “Poussin” category in 1990.
Cabestany inherited his passion for trial from his father (who has made him backpacker for many years), a great fan of this sport and an amateur competitor as a young man. At the age of twelve, Albert left the bike and moved to the controls of a trial bike.
The 1997 season saw his debut in the Trial World Championship – specifically, on April 5 at the San Lorenzo Trial – and his progression in a few years was constant. The 2001 season was tough for him, as he had to go under the knife to remove a plate that had been placed on him as a result of an injury he suffered in 2000.
Just a year later, in 2002, he won his Indoor World Champion title with a victory exploding in the last event. It was the second year he had participated in this championship, and he had signed up as an alternate. In fact, he knew that he would be able to play a full game shortly before his start, due to an injury to Graham Jarvis.
Since then he has always been among the favourites for victory, having to coexist with two of the best riders of all time, Toni Bou and Adam Raga, who have not allowed Albert Cabestany’s track record to continue to grow despite his great performance.
Albert Cabestany has been an official Sherco rider for more than a decade and Lluis Gallach, a former trial rider, is his backpacker and trusted person in racing.
For 2018, Albert Cabestany signed with Beta.
PILOT PROFILE
Albert Cabestany Gálvez
Date of birth: June 26, 1980
Spanish nationality, born in Tarragona
