Born into a military family, Alberto Valdés played baseball and football in his youth and became interested in horses when he was 10-years-old, while living in Paris, France, where his father was a military attaché to the Mexican Consulate. A graduate of Heroico Colegio Militar (Heroic Military College) in Mexico City, Captain Valdés was a member of the Mexican “Dream Team” that dominated show jumping at the 1948 Olympics, where Valdés placed only 10th in the individual event, but as his teammates Humberto Mariles and Rubén Uriza finished the individual event in first and second place, respectively, the Mexican team won the team jumping gold medal. Valdés also won team jumping bronze at the 1951 Pan-American Games. A career military man, Valdés retired from the force as a colonel and later was active in the Mexican Olympic Medalists Association. His son, also named Alberto, became a top equestrien, who won team jumping bronze at the 1980 Olympics.
Mexico