Cuban Pole-Vaulter Yarisley Silva Keeps Cuba 4th in Toronto on Friday

HAVANA, Cuba, Jul 25 (acn) Cuba appeared fourth on the medal table on Friday in the 17th Toronto 2015 Pan-American Games in Canada, thanks to the title achieved by Yarisley Silva in women's pole vault, the only medal won by the Caribbean nation that day.

The Cuban pole-vault star kept the crown won in the previous edition of Guadalajara 2011, this time with 4.85 meters, with which she set a Pan-American record, exceeding the 4.75 meter record set by herself four years ago in the Mexican city.
Silva, London 2012 Olympic silver medalist, also set the best record in the current athletics season to top the podium completed by Brazilian Fabiana Murer (4.80) and Jennifer Suhr (4.60), of the United States.
In other results, Cuban discus thrower Jorge Fernandez finished fifth with 62.04 meters; Yudiley Castillo was eleventh in the women's 10,000 meters, Daysiurami Bonne and Lisneidy Veitía occupied the seventh and eighth positions in the women's 800 meters, while Yordani Garcia finished fifth in decathlon.
In turn, Cuban sprinter Roberto Skyers set his personal best (20.09 seconds) in the semifinals to qualify for the competition for the title in the men's 200 meter event.
Cuba maintained its triumphant performance in boxing and guaranteed the presence of its 10 athletes in the fights for gold medals, after the semi-final wins of Yosbany Veitia, in the 52 kilogram division, Lazaro Alvarez (60), Roniel Iglesias (69), Julio Cesar La Cruz (81) and Lenier Pero (+ 91).
Flyweight Veitia beat Colombian Ceiber Avila 3-0; lightweight Alvarez won against Guatemalan Kevin Luna also by the unanimous decision of judges; Iglesias defeated Argentinean Alberto Palmetta; La Cruz beat Colombian Juan Carlos Carrillo 3-; while super heavyweight Pero defeated experienced U.S. boxer Cam Awesome 2-1.
The Cuban women's saber team had an outstanding performance in the fencing tournament of the Pan-American Games despite losing 38-45 to Venezuela and finish fourth in the event led by the U.S. squad.
In addition, the Cuban women's volleyball team finished fifth after beating Argentina 3-1 (25-21, 21-25, 25-17 and 25-21) onThursday, with excellent offensive of Melissa Vargas with 32 points in the game.
In men's handball, the Cuban squad defeated the Dominican Republic 40-24, while the women's baseball and softball teams lost 13-2 and 5-3 to Venezuela and Brazil, respectively.
With three competitive days left, Cuba appeared fourth in the Games on Friday, with 26 gold medals, 20 silver medals and 30 bronze medals in the standings led by the U.S.A. (83-69-72).