World No.9 Luis Leão Pinto arrives to take part in MTB Himalaya

The arrival of World No. 9 Luis Leão Pinto for the MTB Himalaya is thrilling news for all mountain biking enthusiasts. The Portuguese national champion and European No. 6 has been following MTB Himalaya for a few years now and was eagerly awaiting this year’s MTB Himalaya. A mountain biker at heart, Luis prefers gravel/dirt roads over tarmac.

Luis Leao Pinto in action (No.8)

After winning the national championship in circuit racing (Olympic format) in 2008 in Portugal, Luis exploded onto the international scene. With time and effort, Luis gradually started to make a mark against the best in the world. By 2012, Luis had become a common name on the podium. A few of his recent achievements are:

Titan Desert, Morocco 2013

Titan desert MTB Marathon is a mountain biking event designed and developed on the philosophy of Paris-Dakar. Cyclists compete for six days in the Sahara-Morocco with very few marked paths where navigation and orientation play a role. The desert is a great enemy of the riders – the intense heat, strong winds, endless plains, sandy stretches that slow a rider down, sometimes forcing the rider to even cross them on foot and very stony tracks that punish both cyclists and bikes. The race has been gradually increasing in length every year, covering 601 kms in this year’s edition (8th edition).

Luis Leão Pinto became the first rider in their history to climb the three steps of the podium (1st in 2013, 2nd in 2012, 3rd in 2011). Dominating from the start, Luis took a lead of over eight minutes after the first stage and stayed in front throughout the six day event finishing 2 minutes ahead of his nearest rival.

“For me to win the Milenio Titan Desert by GAES was very important, I had it as a goal in my career. I think that this is a key point in my career, because with this I’m going to take a very important decision,” said the Portuguese, very happy after the win.

Salzkammergut MTB Trophy, Austria 2013

In its 16^th edition, this marathon course runs primarily on public roads, forest roads as well as hiking & biking trails covering around 210 kms in one day. Luis became the first rider since 2005 to win the race in less than 10 hours.

Some of Luis’s other achievements:

• Winner in elite men category MTB Jurmala Marathon 2012, Latvia
• Winner, Latvia XCM(Cross Country Men) World Cup
• 5 time National XCM(Cross Country Men) Champion
• Winner, Brasil Ride 2012, Brazil
• Winner, MTB Tour of Catalunya 2012
• Winner, Endurance H2ote 6h race