Cubans in Budapest to compete in the World Championships in Athletics

 

HAVANA, Cuba, Aug 16 (ACN) Most of the Cuban athletes who will compete in the 19th World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, arrived in the Danube Arena Hotel, next to the National Center of the discipline, in that capital city.

The group of 14 members travelled by bus to the hotel, among them the triple jumpers Lazaro Martinez, Leyanis Perez and Liadagmis Povea, who seem to be the ones with the best chances for Cuba to climb the podium of awards in this world event, to be held from the 19th to the 27th of next year.

Also arriving from the Olympic Center of the Hungarian capital were Cristian Nápoles (triple jump), Roxana Gómez, 400 meters flat runner (m/p), Luis Zayas (high jump) and Rose Almanza (800 m/p), along with coaches Yoelbi Quesada, Ricardo Molina, Ricardo Ponce, Juan F. Centelles and Juan Gualberto Nápoles, doctor Fidel Frías and physiotherapist Maykel Joe Dihígo.

Also on Tuesday, athletes Silinda Morales (discus throw) and long jumper Alejandro Parada landed from the Training Center in Guadalajara, Spain, accompanied by coach Hilda Elisa Ramos, the head of the delegation, María Caridad Colón, national commissioner Rolando Charró and the team's manager, Jorge Luis Aguilera.

The pole vaulter Eduardo Nápoles, the short hurdler Greisys Roble, and the sprinters Yunisleidys García, Yarima García and Jocelyn Echazabal, together with the trainer José Feliciano Bilirs, arrived after a long trip from Havana.

The delegation of 21 competitors will be completed in the next few hours with the last group that has been training at the Pan American Stadium, east of the Cuban capital, as confirmed to the press by the National Athletics Commission.

Some 2,000 athletes from more than 200 nations will participate in the universal competition to be held in Budapest.

A year ago in Eugene, United States, the representatives of the island finished in 29th place by countries, with 15 points and no medals.

Cuba shared that place with Slovenia, thanks to two fourth places, a sixth and a seventh, in a competition in which it went without medals for the first time in the history of these events of the king of sports.

Reversing that discreet performance will now be the goal of the exponents of the Caribbean nation, which in the history of the World Championships is located in a meritorious eighth place in the medal standings, with 60 metals, distributed in 22 gold, 24 silver and 14 bronze.