Yorgelis makes her mark
• The young woman from Guantánamo has had an extraordinary season, and been named 2012 Juvenile Athlete of the Year

Liliana Cid Escalona & Abel Castillo

YORGELIS Rodríguez placed second worldwide in the heptathlon within the cadet division in 2011 and won the 14th World Juvenile Championship in Athletics in this specialty this past July in Barcelona. She is now considered one of the most promising young Cubans competing at this level.

During the Championship, Yorgelis, supported by coach Gersin Luis Castro, accumulated 5,966 points to lead the list of the most accomplished athletes participating. In addition to the great hopes pinned on the young athlete, given that she is just beginning her career, the 17-year-old has already achieved world class results.

During the recently concluded season she reached a score of 5,994 points, her personal best, in addition to winning the aforementioned event.

Given her remarkable consistency, Yorgelis was named Female Juvenile Athlete of the Year in Cuba and agreed to converse with us.

I’m very proud and feel like someone who has accomplished a dream. At the same time, having obtained these results makes me realize that all the sacrifice we make on a daily basis is not in vain. It is a recognition that drives me, that gives me the desire to continue making the effort. I think every day, now that I’ve come this far, that there’s nothing else for me to do but work to get better and move ahead with my sports career.

During the World competition, I thought about everything, from being able to win with less effort, to feeling like there was no way to take the title, which was my personal goal there. I never lost my concentration and I fought during each event to get the most points possible. I had problems with the shot put and the long jump. Things didn’t go the way they should have, given the distances I had reached before. But I bounced back and took advantage of every margin my opponents left me. And that’s how the final result turned out. I remember that at one point, I stopped considering the gold as a viable option, but both my teacher and Juantorena [Alberto Juantorena] encouraged me and I went out to run the 800 meters, which defined everything.

My teacher’s role has made all the difference in my success. He is like a father to me and I always recognize the fact that he knows how to talk with us and how to reach us, to get the best from each one of his athletes, all the time.

This is a huge commitment, having the responsibility to defend the country’s standard means a great deal. I need to go out and seek the best outcome possible, since the people have confidence in their athletes and expect a lot from us.

To work hard with the idea of surpassing the 6,000 point mark and to try to qualify for the adult World championship in Moscow. My goals for this next season are focused on this event and the Pan American Juveniles.