Josep Cusí passed away this Wednesday in Barcelona at the age of 92. A businessman, athlete, and one of the great owners in Spanish sailing, Cusí maintained a close friendship for more than six decades with Juan Carlos I, with whom he shared much of his sailing career aboard successive generations of the Bribón.
Their relationship began in the early 1960s. Over time, Cusí became one of the most discreet confidants of the then-Prince Juan Carlos and, later, his boat owner and right-hand man in the world of sailing.
Cusí had studied electronic engineering and built a career in business outside the world of sports. However, his passion for sports remained a constant throughout much of his life. He was a competitive swimmer and water polo player and later excelled in trap shooting, a discipline in which he represented Spain at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico. He also practiced scuba diving and participated in expeditions alongside Jacques Cousteau.
El Bribón, a collaborative project
His relationship with Juan Carlos I took on a new dimension in the early 1970s, when both men began competing in sailing. In 1971, he began sailing the first Bribón, then owned by Cusí, while Juan Carlos sailed aboard a similar boat called the Shere-Kan. A year later, the two would join forces on the Bribón II.
From then on, their roles were clearly defined: Juan Carlos took on the role of skipper, and Cusí served as the owner, also taking charge of assembling the crews. Over the decades, the successive generations of the Bribón became one of the most recognizable dynasties in Spanish sailing.
One of the main stages for their sporting rivalry was the Copa del Rey, the first edition of which was held in 1982. Cusí and Juan Carlos I won the competition together five times: in 1984, 1985, 1993, 1994, and 2000, always aboard different Bribón-class boats.
Some of the most prominent figures in Spanish sailing were part of those early crews, including Antonio Gorostegui, José Luis Doreste, and Alejandro Guasch, as well as Constantino de Grecia.
The Bribón project continued to evolve over the following decades. In 2007, what would be the last vessel in the series until 2011 was launched, although Cusí would later continue to finance other projects related to the retired king’s sailing activities.
Professional Sail Propeller
Cusí’s influence on Spanish sailing was not limited to the Bribón. In 2005, he led the introduction of the TP52 class in Spain, with the Bribón among the first Spanish projects to embrace these high-performance boats. Subsequently, the TP52s established themselves as one of the leading benchmarks in professional sailing, first on the MedCup circuit and later in the 52 Super Series.
Cusí also served as an ambassador for the shipowners in this class, contributing to the expansion of a category that would eventually take on significant international importance.
His career was also linked to institutions in Barcelona society, such as the Real Club Náutico de Barcelona and the Círculo del Liceo. He was married for the third time to Inés Muiños and had six children.
In 2021, he suffered a stroke that affected his final years and caused mobility issues. His health deteriorated significantly in his final days.
With his passing, one of the most remarkable figures in the recent history of Spanish sailing is gone. For Juan Carlos I, this also marks the loss of one of his closest friends and collaborators for more than half a century, with whom he shared competitions, victories, and decades of sailing aboard the Bribón.