An example of improvement and resilience, Albert Llovera (Andorra, 1966) is one of the most admired drivers of the Dakar Rally. However, his career within elite sport has been marked by the same thing that makes him an inspiration. And it’s not his wheelchair, but his way of seeing the world. Jovial, active and eager for speed, last January he competed in what is now his ninth Dakar race. With the help of Ford Trucks and with his niece Margot Llobera as co-driver, he reached 17th position. “We wanted to be able to finish the race,” says the Andorran with a smile, “now it’s time to enjoy what we’ve achieved.”
His experience as an elite athlete dates back to the Sarajevo Olympic Games (1984); a year before the accident that, during the European Ski Cup, would bind his life to a wheelchair. Exchanging skis for motorsports and with the desire to always excel, he has come a long way that has led him to be the first disabled driver to participate in the World Rally Championship (2001). Since then, he has stood on the podium alongside other able-bodied athletes, has been named a UNICEF ambassador and continues working to improve the adaptability of vehicles to make the lives of other people in the same situation easier.
How do you feel after this ninth Dakar in which you participate? An edition, furthermore, that was predicted to be more complicated than the previous ones.
I feel pretty good because, precisely, this year has been complicated to the point of boring. Stages one and three were super hard and, in addition, in the third I had a problem that did not allow me to start in stage four. I had a very bad time because I had punctures in my brain and we didn’t know what it was. The doctors thought it was from the bruises of driving with so many rocks and, in the end, my osteopath came and saw that a rib had come out.
Luckily, you managed to recover.
Yes, he was working on me for four days, between three and four hours a day. Otherwise, I would have gone home. Luckily, the following stages were already completely sandy, so after that we gave gas to all parts and we were able to finish in 17th place, which is super good. It is not my best result (15th in 2020), but we almost achieved it even with the penalty of not having started in stage four. And, by the way, the organization has sent an email to all the truck teams apologizing for not having thought about us and how bad they left it (laughs).
You have already raced on three continents, Africa, South America and the Middle East. How did your career in the world of Dakar begin?
The one in Africa (2007) was my first time. The Isuzu team, the manufacturer from Japan, called me and I thought it was a joke. I ran rallies and the only sand I had seen was when I went to the beach with my parents. They told me that they had been following me in the Rally Finland (10th position) and that they wanted me. That was my entry into the Dakar, but I continued doing rallies, which was my thing.
Then, in 2012, Nasser Al-Attiyah met my daughter at the Olympic Games, he called me and told me that I had to return to the Dakar and, in 2014, I entered the Dakar at full strength.
In the World Rally Championship, Nasser and I were the only drivers who had gone to the Olympics and, when we were with Sainz, Loeb and all of these, he always said: “yes, yes, you are world champions, but the only drivers Olympians are Albert and I.”
After these years, what does the Dakar have that still makes it so special?
Well, it’s quite addictive. You can be whoever you want because there you are nobody. You fight against the other teams, but most of the time, which is a very long time, you fight against yourself. You have to think a lot about your body, about the mechanics and you encounter many unforeseen events.
Unlike rallies, it seems to be quite an adventure.
Yes. You find places that you can’t climb, very broken spaces that force you to turn around and think about how you can do it, to make decisions. There are also very serious accidents. It’s a different career.
In the case of rallies, which is what I competed in, they last two or three days; and rallycross, six minutes. It is very “sprint”. Although the Dakar is also increasingly “sprint”.
What is the most difficult thing about running a Dakar race for a person with a disability?
The second Dakar. It turns out that when you get off the truck there is another Dakar (the bivouac). The ground is sandy in many places. In others you have the hard part, but it is especially complicated because of the issue of the bath or shower. And now they have an adapted shower, which is good, but it is an aspect that consumes you as much as the Dakar itself.
Is there any prototype of an adapted truck?
I have no problem with that because I am quite versatile. I run well on asphalt, dirt, sand, ice, front-wheel drive, rear-wheel drive, four-wheel drive… whatever they give me. I adapt to each brand and specialty.
I get on the truck, which weighs 9,000 kilos and I am almost three meters high. The G forces are totally different because we are talking about a 1000 horsepower truck. It has sparkle. Plus, he runs a lot. We are limited to 140 km/h, but in the tests in Morocco I put it at almost 190 and it could even go further.
What goals do you have now?
After my last experience in the Dakar, I take everything more calmly. I had two important decisions: The first was not to start in stage four, something that turned out to be good because if not, I would not have recovered; and the second was in the Empty Quarter, when I got stuck in a very small pot right in the middle of the road and, upon leaving, I decided to return home.
So, when Toyota called me this year to do eight races with Ford’s permission, I said no. I had achieved a goal (finishing the race) and I wanted to enjoy it. I’ve been doing this for thirty years, and in that time, whenever I’ve achieved something, I’ve immediately looked for something else.
In addition, there is another type of work that, at this point, fulfills me more. At this moment, I work with Guidosimplex, which is the number one manufacturer of vehicle adaptations in the world, and with Sunrise Medical, where I develop and design the best wheelchairs, almost as if they were Porsches for going down the street.
What is special about them?
They are more sporty, for very active people.
Speaking of adaptability, do you think enough work is being done to make sport adaptable to people with disabilities?
Well, I was the first person to have a license to compete in motorsports and it took me almost two years to get it. They gave me a hard time and I have competed against the best.
I think that people with disabilities want to play sports, but the problem is that everyone has medals because there are three hundred categories. For example, I have never wanted them to make a category for the lame. If there had been, I wouldn’t be doing this. I compete with inclusion, whether I go with a wheelchair or not is my problem.
And just as in motorsports, could this type of inclusion be extended to other sports?
I am clear that I could not play football or basketball if it is not adapted, but perhaps in tennis something could be thought of; Or in archery, why is there a category for the lame and another for the lame?
Will we see you compete in the Dakar 2025?
I’ll try. As long as all the sponsorships come to me and I have the financial push, yes.
