Alfonso de Portago

Uncommon card · No. 141673

Alfonso Cabeza de Vaca y Leighton, 11th Marquess of Portago, GE (11 October 1928 – 12 May 1957), best known as Alfonso de Portago, was a Spanish aristocrat, racing and bobsleigh driver, jockey and pilot. Born in London to a prominent family in the peerage of Spain, Portago was named after his godfather, King Alfonso XIII. His grandfather, the 9th Marquess of Portago, had been Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts and Mayor of Madrid, while his father, who was President of Puerta de Hierro and a prolific golfer, died of a heart attack while showering after a polo match. His mother, Olga Leighton, was an Irish nurse. At the age of 17, Portago began displaying his flamboyant lifestyle by winning a $500 bet after flying a borrowed plane under London Tower Bridge. He twice rode the Grand National as "gentleman rider" and formed the first Spanish bobsleigh team with his cousins, finishing fourth in the 1956 Winter Olympics, missing the bronze medal by 0.16 seconds. In 1953, Portago was...

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