S P O R T S

• BEST ATHLETES OF 2013
Fraser, Adams and Hejnova in the lead
November 14, 2013
JAMAICAN Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce flew along the track, New Zealander Valerie Adams had another unbeatable season in shot put and no one cleared the hurdles like the Czech Zuzana Hejnová. Their virtues and records have made them finalists for the 2013 Best World Athlete, according to the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) survey.

• Cuban baseball season openers
November 7, 2013
SANTA CLARA.— Cuba’s National Baseball Series opened its 53rd season November 3, this time breaking with the tradition of beginning with one inaugural game between the previous year’s champions and runner-up

• FOOTBALL EVERYWHERE IN CUBA
A great pool of talented young players
November 1, 2013
EVERYWHERE you look, in parks, lots and apartment house patios in Cuban cities, improvised fields in rural communities, people of all ages are joyfully running about to the cry of "Gol" - and not only under the sporadic influence of a World Cup, but every day.

• National Baseball Series set to begin in November
October 24, 2013
THE first games of Cuba’s 53rd National Baseball Series will be played November 3, including a much-anticipated duel in Santa Clara, according to the National Baseball Federation.

• Juvenile World Judo Championship
Young men well prepared
October 17, 2013
ONE training session more, one day less. This is the routine being followed by the Cuban juvenile men’s Judo team as the young athletes prepare for the World (under 20) Championship. The event set for October 23-27, in Slovenia’s capital city, is drawing close.

• The exceptional Yipsi
October 11, 2013
ONE might think that anyone investigating high jumpers would focus on the current World Champion Bohdan Bondarenko from the Ukraine.

• PRE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FOR WOMEN
Stars shine at zero hour
October 3, 2013
THE Cuban women’s basketball team won its last title in the 2005 FIBA American Championship for Women, held in the Dominican province of Hato Mayor, missing the 2009 and 2011 finals in Mato Grosso, Brazil, and Neiva, Colombia, respectively. Thus their victory in the Mexican city of Xalapa was a welcome surprise for Cuban sports fans.

• Cuba’s up and coming athletes
September 26, 2013
AFTER waiting eight days for a victory in the Moscow Athletics Championship, August 10-18, the eight gold medals won by Cuba’s juvenile athletes in Medillín, later that same month, were especially encouraging to Cuba’s track and field team. The 23 to 25-year-olds broke out in smiles, despite the fact that their event was a continental competition, not a world championship.

• Cuban Baseball News
September 19, 2013
AFTER much speculation about the initiation of Cuba’s 53rd National Series, national director for the sport, Higinio Vélez reported to a September 13 meeting of the National Sports, Physical Education and Recreation Institute (INDER) with the press, that Cuba’s baseball season will begin November 3, in eight ballparks around the country, breaking with the tradition of opening the series with a special game between the previous year’s champion and second-place team.

• Yarisley Silva
2013: Vaulting with commitment
September 12, 2013
DESCRIBING Yarisley Silva (Pinar del Río, June 1, 1987) as the best female pole-vaulter of the 2013 season is no exaggeration, although she was unable to take top honors in the 14th Moscow World Championship or the year’s Diamond League competition. Her performance does, however, provide more than enough evidence to support the assertion.

• Diana Nyad does it!
September 6, 2013
MIAMI.—U.S. swimmer Diana Nyad completed her crossing of the Strait of Florida without a shark protection cage, leaving Havana and reaching the coast of Key West in Florida on September 2.

• Cuban boxers excel in meet with Mexico’s best
September 6, 2013
CUBA’S Domadores team won seven of 10 bouts with Mexico’s Guerreros, in a preparatory meet prior to the 4th World Boxing Series, set to begin in November. The two teams are both placed in Group B for this competition, along with Poland, Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, winners of the last edition.

• Cuban wins silver in World Rowing Championship
September 6, 2013
AFTER a long wait, Cuba has finally secured a medal in the South Korea World Rowing Championships, thanks to Angel Fournier from Guantánamo in the single skulls, who finished with a historic silver, September 1 in Chungiu, South Korea, becoming the best rower of all time in the country.

• Rio de Janeiro World Championship
Cuba reaffirms its strength in Judo
September 6, 2013
CUBA reaffirmed its strength in Judo with an outstanding performance in the 29th World Judo Championship, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Cuba’s Olympic champion Idalys Ortiz (+78kg) and Asley González (90kg) won gold medals in their respective divisions.

• Ciego de Avila wins World Baseball Challenge in Canada
August 31, 2013
CIEGO de Avila’s Tigers, representing Cuba, defeated Japan’s JX Eneos with a knockout score of 14-4, to win the 3rd World Baseball Challenge, held in the Canadian city of Prince George, with five teams from around the world participating.

• Jamaica third by country in Moscow World Athletics
August 22, 2013
WITH the gold medals won on the final day in the men’s and women’s 4x100m relays, Jamaica came third in the general medals table of the 14th Moscow World Athletics Championships, won by Russia.

• Javier Sotomayor: 25 years as world record holder
August 22, 2013
HOW have you lived with the threat to your record of 2.45 meters?
“I haven’t lived with it, rather I have relived it, because for a long time nobody has attempted it. It was always threatened, above all when I was jumping, because then there were many athletes who could have reached it, and in fact tried to do so on various occasions.”

• Moscow World Athletics Championships
Yarelys Barrios and Yarisley Silva give Cuba its first medals
August 15, 2013
DISCUS thrower Yarelys Barrios and pole-vaulter Yarisley Silva, who won bronze medals at the 14th World Athletics Championships in Moscow, have given Cuba 20th place to date on the country medals list and 15th in the general ranking, thanks to 13 points accumulated.

• Leinier ranked number 12 world-wide
August 9, 2013
With no change in his 2,757 Elo score, Cuban Leinier Domínguez improved his ranking, moving up one position to be recognized as the world’s 12th best chess player.

• TAEKWONDO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Cuba second among 133 countries
July 23, 2013
Two gold medals and three bronze allowed Cuba to place second among 133 countries competing in the Taekwondo World Championship, held in, Puebla, Mexico.

• Paragliding from Varadero to Havana
July 18, 2013
"WE have a bigger project, making the flight from Batabanó to the Isle of Youth, approximately 130 kilometers, but we decided to do it first overland.

• Leinier excelling in chess
July 11, 2013
THE excellent win of 30 units defined by his standard of play at the Thessalonica Grand Prix took Cuban Grandmaster Leinier Domínguez to 13th place in the world ranking revised by the World Chess Federation (FIDE).

• Cuba wins 13 medals in regional swimming championship
July 11, 2013
CUBA sealed its participation in the 28th Central American and Caribbean Aquatic Sports Championship in Costa Rica, with five gold, four silver and four bronze medals.

• 14th Rotterdam Tournament
Cuba wins ninth title
July 11, 2013
FOR the ninth time, a Cuban team has taken top honors at the traditional World Port Baseball Tournament in Rotterdam, defeating Holland 4-0, with an excellent performance by Pinar del Río pitchers Wilber Pérez and Raciel Iglesias. The team’s 12 hits allowed Cuba to take the lead early in the game.

• Isla Margarita Pan American Weightlifting Championships
July 5, 2013
WITHOUT coming close to lifting the 210 and 205 kilograms which gave him a silver and bronze medal in Antalya 2010 and Paris 2011, and faithful to his position as a world elite weightlifter, Yoelmis Hernández from Pinar del Río, took three golds in the 85kg division at the Isla Margarita Pan American Weightlifting Championships.

• Yarisley Silva wins in Birmingham!
July 5, 2013
LONDON (PL) .—Cuban pole-vaulter Yarisley Silva, London 2012 Olympic silver medalist, has won the Birmingham Grand Prix, the seventh stage of the World Athletics Diamond League.

• 15th World Aquatics Championships
Who will bring home a medal?
June 28, 2013
THE World Aquatics Championship will be celebrating its 40th birthday when athletes gather in Barcelona, July 19 through August 4, for the event's 15th edition.

• Villa Clara, Cuban Baseball Champions 
June 20, 2013
A grand slam by catcher Ariel Pestano sealed the victory for Villa Clara over Matanzas in Cuba’s 52nd Baseball Series championship final, to win the team’s fifth title in its history.

• Cuba to compete in Caribbean World Series
June 13, 2013
THE next Caribbean Series Baseball Tournament, to be played in early 2014 on Isla Margarita, Venezuela, will include a Cuban team, according to a recent announcement in Havana's Hotel Nacional.

• Cuban baseball season finale begins
June 13, 2013
TEAMS from Villa Clara and Matanzas are facing off in the seven-game playoff final of Cuba’s National Series.

• Leinier Domínguez wins Thessaloniki Chess Grand Prix
June 7, 2013
CUBAN chess Grandmaster Leinier Domínguez has won the Thessaloniki Chess Grand Prix in Greece after outplaying Bulgarian Veselin Topalov and overtaking U.S. Gata Kamsky, who lost to Italian Fabiano Caruana.

• 52nd National Series playoffs
Four finalists decided
May 30,2013
THE heartbreaking playoffs of Cuba’s 52nd National Baseball Series are underway. Making the semifinals has been the goal of the country’s 16 teams since November, 2012, when the season began. Some were left by the roadside, along the way. Eight teams were eliminated during the hard-fought qualifying stage and now last year’s champs (Ciego de Avila) and the number two team (Industriales) are out. Two traditional contenders for the title, Santiago de Cuba and Pinar del Río didn’t make the cut either. It is no easy task.

• Isam Ortiz to the World Cup
May 23,2013
GRAND Master Isam Ortiz registered another important success in his career, finishing second in the Continental Chess Tournament in Cochabamba, Bolivia and thereby acquiring one of four slots awarded to the World Cup, to be held next August in Troms, Norway.

• ARLENIS SIERRA
"The hardest thing is going out to train every day"
May 23,2013
CYCLIST Arlenis Sierra believed. Of course, she believed. How could she not after winning the Pan American Championship, with power to spare despite fighting off competitors during the difficult ride.

• From 'Chicken' to prize rooster
May 17,2013
WITH a nickname that no one would imagine for a world-class swimmer, Pollo (Chicken), Hanser Garcia continues to astound fans as he flies through the water.

• Belem Grand Prix
Cuban triple jumper wins gold medal in Brazil
May 17,2013
CUBAN triple jumper Ernesto Revé made his fourth jump this year over 17 meters and won a gold medal May 12, in Belem, the first stop of Brazil's Athletics Grand Prix.

• Gateau Diving Grand Prix
Outstanding performance of Cuban platform divers in Canada
May 9,2013
ONCE again in second place behind the Chinese pair, in this third meet of the FINA 2013 Diving Grand Prix, held in Gatineau, Canada, Cuban diving pair, José Antonio Guerra and Jeinkler Aguirre took silver with a score of 450.09, their highest this season.

• Good performance from Cuba in Pan American women’s cycling championships
May 9,2013
BASED on endurance and patience, Arlenis Sierra and Marlies Mejías took gold and silver in the Pan American Road Championships, in the Mexican city of Zacatecas, placing Cuba on the medals podium alongside other strong competitors from the continent.

• Yarisley Silva wins Mall Vault
May 2,2013
CUBAN Yarisley Silva shone in the “Pole Vault in the Mall” organized in the Jordan Creek Shopping Mall in the U.S. city of Des Moines, Iowa, as part of the Drake Relays.

• CONRADO MARRERO
Birthday greetings to a Cuba baseball great
May 2,2013
CONRADO Marrero, the legend of Cuban and world baseball, celebrated his 102nd birthday on April 25.

• PLATAFORMA SINCRONIZADA
Guerra-Aguirre take silver in World Series
April 25,13
Cuban diving duo José Antonio Guerra and Jeinkler Aguirre took silver in the synchronized platform diving event, in the third leg of the FINA/Midea Diving World Series 2013 in Edinburgh.

• Cuban female team wins Pan American judo championship
April 25,13
The Cuban women’s team took three golds and three silver medals to become overall winners of the individual tournament in the Pan American judo championships in Costa Rica.

• Raúl welcomes FIFA president
April 22,13
On Wednesday April 17, Raúl Castro Ruz, President of the Councils of State and Ministers, welcomed Joseph Blatter, president of the International Football Federation (FIFA), who was on a working visit to Cuba.

• GONZALEZ LEUDIN
How long is this suspension going to last?
April 17,13
Since becoming a high performance athlete, Leudin Claro González (Holguin, October 19, 1973) has had to overcome several setbacks, though, in his days on the national team, his main obstacle was the shadow of injuries, which included operations on his knee cap and fractured tibia and ribs.

• KESHORN WALCOTT
Cricket, a challenge, Olympic glory and … Cuba
April 17,13
Trinidad & Tobago has only two Olympic medal winners, both are field and track athletes and hold records. In Montreal in 1976, Hasely Crawford outran Jamaican favorite Don Quarrie in the 100 meters in 10.06 seconds, besting Quarrie’s 10.08, and Keshorn Walcott (84.58 meters, javelin), barely 19 at the time, who surprised everyone in the final rounds of the London Olympics in terms of records.

• 15th Terry Fox Run in Cuba
April 5,13
THOUSANDS of Cubans walked, jogged or ran in the 15th Terry Fox Run on Saturday, March 30, with events in every municipality, as well as in rural and mountainous areas.

• CUBA’S BASEBALL SEASON RESUMES
All-Star game won by the West
March 28,13
THE West defeated the East, 13-9, in Cuba’s 26th All-Star Game held in José Antonio Huelga Stadium in the provincial capital of Sancti Spíritus, 359 kilometers east of Havana, March 24.

• Effort produces results…
March 28,13
TRIPLE jumper Ernesto Revé admitted being unhappy with himself after performing poorly during the London Olympics due to an injury. However, he was determined to approach the new season as a clean slate and jumped for 17.46 meters in the recent Cuba Cup competition, getting a good start on the road to the Moscow World Championships.

• Cubans preparing for Moscow World Championships
March 21,13
IN a year when the world championships are the highlight of Cuban athletics, the close of the Cuba Cup brought good news for many of Cuba’s key athletes, including world-class records.

• Two islands top of the world
March 21,13
THEY were placed in the same elimination group and managed to advance to the second round, from which they left behind powerful teams to reach the final. There is no doubt about it: the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico played the best games and their ascent to the top is more than well-deserved.

• Holland knocks Cuba out of the Baseball World Classic
March 14,13
TOKYO.—"Only one person is responsible for the defeat, and that is me, players don’t lose games, I lose them. The coach has the maximum responsibility," affirmed Víctor Mesa.

• CUBA’S DECATHLON ATHLETES
Leonel Suárez getting in gear with Coach Gabino
February 28,13
SHORT sprints, attacking the first hurdle, ideal pacing, technique and leg position – these are the elements in which Gabino Arzola and his decathlon disciple Leonel Suárez are immersed as they train in Havana’s Pan American Stadium, looking toward the World Championship, scheduled for August 10-18, next summer in Moscow.

• Cuban boxers excell in the Dominican Republic
February 28,13
THE Cuban team finished with six wins and led the Independence Boxing Cup at the Technological University of Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic on February 23.

• STOCKHOLM XL-GALAN MEET
Yarisley establishes new record • Ortega wins gold medal
February 28,13
ONCE again rising to the occasion, Yarisley Silva vaulted 4.78 meters in the XL-Galan meet in Stockholm, Sweden, to finish the winter European tour ranked number one in the world. Cuba’s Orlando Ortega also took a title during the competition, in the 60 meter hurdles.

• INTERVIEW WITH VÍCTOR MESA
A commitment to the Cuban people motivates this team
February 21,13
VÍCTOR Mesa, manager of the team representing Cuba in the 3rd World Baseball Classic, spoke with Granma about the principles and values which sustain the team, as it takes on the commitment to meet the people’s expectations.

• PAN AMERICAN CYCLING CHAMPIONSHIP
Cuba reigns on the track
February 21,13
WITH a total of 13 medals (7-4-2), the Cuban track cycling team finished first among countries in the Pan American Cycling Championship held in Mexico City. Colombia (4-6-3) and Venezuela (3-2-6), took the second and third spots respectively.

• Birmingham Grand Prix
Yarisley wins another medal
February 21,13
CUBAN pole vaulter Yarisley Silva continues to maintain her presence on the medal podium during this winter indoor athletics season, winning a silver at the Birmingham Grand Prix in the United Kingdom.

• Cuban World Classic team selected
February 14,13
ON February 13, Cuba’s baseball leadership announced the 28-player team which will represent the country in the 3rd World Classic. Since the conclusion of the first phase of the 52nd National Series a pre-selection team of 36 has been intensively training in Havana's Latinoamericano Stadium .

• Leinier & Bruzón move up in world ranking
February 7,13
CUBAN Grand Masters Leinier Domínguez and Lázaro Bruzón have advanced to the 24th and 38th positions, respectively, according to the most recent world ranking announced January 31 by the World Chess Federation (FIDE). Most noteworthy was the new record of 2872 Elo points established by Norwegian Magnus Carlsen.

• A dozen Cuban cyclists to Pan American Championship
February 7,13
CUBA is sending a team of 12 members to compete in the Pan American Track Cycling Championship in Mexico City, February 6-10.

• Cuban hurdler Ortega wins gold medal in Germany
February 7,13
CUBA’S Orlando Ortega won a gold medal, February 2, in the
60-meter hurdles during an indoor meet in the German city of Karlsruhe.

• Cuban cycling takes off in Aguascalientes
February 1,13
WITH the conclusion of the third and final stage of World Cup competition in the Mexican city of Aguascalientes, we can confidently say that Cuban track cycling is doing well, coming away with two medals.

• Yarisley Silva ready for winter season
February 1,13
AS the new year begins, Yarisley Silva and her coach Alexander Navas are focused on maintaining the athlete’s position among the world’s pole vaulting elite. The Olympic silver medalist is preparing to initiate her winter season at the Russian Winter competition February 3, in the best possible condition.

• Mijaín among the best in the world
February 1,13
GRECO-Roman wrestler Mijaín López was selected as one of the sport’s five best in 2012, according to the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles, a distinction he shared with athletes from Russia, Azerbaijan and Japan.

• Dayron Robles retires
February 1,13
DAYRON Robles, Olympic champion in the 110-meter hurdles, is no longer a member of the Cuban athletics team, at his own request, according to Juventud Rebelde.

• Cuba’s 3rd World Baseball Classic team announced
January 25,13
STRENGTH at bat, speedy base-running and solid defense on the field; in other words, all three fundamental aspects of the game, characterize the Cuban national team registered with organizers of the 2013 World Baseball Classic, scheduled for March 2-19.

• Four Cubans to be inducted into Fencing Hall of Fame
January 17,13
CUBANS Ramón Fonst, Rolando Tucker, Eduardo Jons and Rafaela González are to be inducted into the International Fencing Federation’s Hall of Fame, during the FIE’s centenary year. The organization is celebrating its 100th anniversary this coming November. Mercedes del Risco, methodologist for the Cuban Federation, reported that 100 athletes will be honored as part of activities planned to commemorate the November 29, 1913 founding of the International Federation.

• Yorgelis makes her mark
January 17,13
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.

• Daegu silver medalist focused and going for more
January 10,13
ERASING a negative memory is never easy for an athlete, especially if it involves an important competition, none less than the London Summer Olympics, where Lázaro Borges arrived as a favorite, having finished second in the Daegu World Championship with a record of 5.90 meters, but ended his effort prematurely with a broken pole. With this on his shoulders, the 26-year-old pole vaulter trains every morning, as the winter circuit begins.

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