"One small problem can destroy all your Dakar"
En bref
- The love of Albert Veliamovic for the Dakar goes way back. It started while watching the highlights of the race on TV and being astonished at seeing trucks overtake bikes and cars on the long straights of Africa. But after watching it on TV, he just had to see the real thing. He therefore flew to Peru in 2019 to follow the race as a tourist.
- The next step was actually taking part in the rally. After considering doing it on a bike, he realized it would be too tough and focused on becoming a co-driver.
- The 2025 edition wasn’t Albert Veliamovic’s first discovery of the Dakar but it was the first time he appeared in a far smaller machine. In 2024, the Lithuanian was onboard a truck and had a first taste of the event as a navigator for compatriot Vaidotas Paskevicius. Sadly, their adventure stopped as soon as day 6 when the engine of their old truck broke down for good.
- After retiring of the last Dakar as soon as stage 4, the 37-year-old returns in the cockpit of one of the best driver’s in the Challenger class: Saudi Arabia’s Saleh Al Saif. After competing in the Saudi cross-country championship with various drivers, Veliamovic takes on the Dakar with the confidence of having recently won the Jeddah Baja with Al Saif.
Ambition
A.V.: “I watched the Dakar on TV for a couple of years and then I thought: "I have to see the Dakar for myself". The only option I had was to be a co-driver or to ride a motorbike. I bought a bike and started racing but I soon realized that riding a motorcycle takes a lot of time and I didn’t have the time or the energy for it. So, the only option left was to become a co-driver. So, for my first Dakar as a competitor, I started in the truck category. We drove a very old 2011 truck. It was probably the oldest truck in the race. Unfortunately, our engine died. We couldn’t finish the Dakar at our first attempt. At that moment I decided that I had to come back to Dakar to get the finish medal that I wanted to take home and give to my son.
Last year, we had a mechanical problem in the 48h chrono stage. Oil was leaking out from the gearbox and the car just stopped. We tried to find some solutions but we couldn’t, it was still 620km left to finish so we decided to retire from the race. One small problem can destroy all your Dakar, your dream about the podium and getting medals… It was a short Dakar for us, but in the beginning, we managed to keep good speed and to have good results.
Baja Jeddah where we won the T3 class was a good race and a good practice before Dakar 2026!"
