Francisco Villaescusa, the Sports Councillor, has thanked renowned Spanish mountaineer Juanito Oiarzabal for sharing his experiences and knowledge during his visit to Albacete. Oiarzabal, the sixth person in the world to summit all 14 of the world's 8,000-metre peaks, attended the screening of the documentary titled ‘Oiarzabal’ at the Municipal Film Library as part of the fifth mountain conference in Albacete.
The event, organised by the Regional Federation of Mountain Sports in collaboration with the City Council and the Municipal Sports Institute (IMD), has generated significant interest among mountain sports enthusiasts. Villaescusa noted the presence of legendary figures such as Sebastián Álvaro, Íker and Eneko Pou, Pipi Cardell, and Carlos Soria, adding that Oiarzabal's involvement brings an “extra level of quality” to the conference. He described it as “a true luxury and privilege” to host Oiarzabal, as evidenced by the attendance of over 300 people at the Film Library.
During his speech, Villaescusa commended the Regional Federation of Mountain Sports and particularly its vice president, Óscar Cardo, for their efforts in ensuring the organisational success of this edition, which has become a staple in the city's sporting calendar.
This year’s conference introduces paragliding, an adventure sport associated with mountain activities, featuring Albacete native Horacio Llorens as a key figure. Llorens will present a talk titled ‘Flying among giants’ tomorrow at 18:30 at the Education Delegation. Additionally, on Thursday, two proposals will be presented: a training programme for female guides in Pakistan at 17:30 and a talk by Jordi Cruz, a climber living with Parkinson's disease who aims to compete in the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics, at 18:30.
Villaescusa encouraged the public, especially mountain sports enthusiasts, to continue enjoying the high-quality programming offered by the fifth mountain conference, with free entry until capacity is reached for each event.
