This Wednesday, the International Boxing Association (IBA) announced that its board of directors decided to end the measure that prohibited boxers from Russia and Belarus from competing in events organized by the sports entity.

According to the document, the return to the competitions of Russian and Belarusian technical officials is also contemplated. In addition, it was reiterated that the teams of both countries “will be able to act under their flags” and if they win a gold medal, their national anthems will be played.

“The IBA firmly believes that politics should not have any influence in sports,” the organization said, stressing that “all athletes must have the same conditions.”

“The IBA has an obligation to ensure equal treatment of athletes and competition officials, regardless of their nationality and residence,” he said.

IOC president accused of blackmailing Russian athletes

Thomas Bach, President of the IOC. Photo: File.

The former president of the Russian Olympic Committee, Alexander Zhukov, accused the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, of blackmailing Russian athletes.

In an interview with Corriere della Sera newspaper last week, Bach said athletes from Russia could compete under neutral status if they “distance themselves” from Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine.

“Once again, sports and politics are mixed. This is a kind of blackmail to which in no case should one succumb,” said Zhúkov, quoted by RIA Novosti, describing Bach’s statements as “provocative”.

“I hope none of our athletes take that step. At least everyone I asked said unequivocally that they would not,” he added.

(With information from RT in Spanish)

The words of Rolando Acebal, head coach of the Cuban national boxing team, were emphatic. The strategist described as timely the visit of the Kazakhs, one of the three strongest teams in the sport, along with Cuba and Uzbekistan.

“Our young men were very motivated by the visit. They trained hard. The sparring sessions were like real fights. It was useful, in some cases, for secondary figures on the pre-selection team to see fighters with a style they had never faced before,” Acebal reported.

The coach commented that there was no fear that the Kazakhs would decipher the secret of the success achieved by the Cubans. The two teams have held joint training camps in the past and the results of bouts between the two have been quite even in in recent years. For Acebal, there is not much more to study, only to train, with high expectations and the best rivals.

“They say that we are the best in the world, that’s why they come to train with us, even though they could go someplace else, where there are better technical conditions. The level of Kazakhstan is indisputable. The fact that they consider us the world’s number one boxers is the result of the work that has been done here over decades.”

For this visit to Havana, the Kazakhs traveled with a total of 16 fighters, four of them already classified for the Tokyo Olympic Games. Saken Bibossinov (52 kg), 2019 world bronze medalist; Serik Temirzhanov (57); Ablaikhan Zhussupov (69), 2019 world bronze medalist, and Abilkhan Amankul (75), 2019 world runner-up, will be in the Japanese capital and are the most experienced figures who visited Cuba’s Holveín Quesada National Boxing School.

Four other boxers with tickets to the Olympics – Zakir Safiullin (63), Bekzad Nurdauletov (81), Vassiliy Levit (91) and Kamshybek Kunkabayev (+91 kg), are currently fighting in the United States, along with other members of the team.

“Kazakhstan works with approximately 70 boxers, to cover the annual competitive calendar. They don’t always go to the most important events with the top performers. In many cases they prefer to take the man who is in the best shape at the moment, hence, sometimes, you don’t see a world champion defending his title,” Acebal noted.

Referring to the Cuban team’s training program in coming weeks, Acebal reported that they expect to travel to Russia, if the epidemiological conditions allow. Those who remain in Havana will surely continue to prepare with maximum rigor, since the boxers who will represent the country in the pre-Olympic of the Americas have not yet been selected.

(Taken from Granma)

These are two of the three national teams with the most consistent results over the last ten years, along with Uzbekistan’s. The Eurasians’ visit to the island is a reflection of their respect for the technical level of the Cuban school of boxing, from which even our most seasoned adversaries know they can learn.

This collaboration gives continuity to the training plan designed by Cuban coaches in September, in the absence of national and international tournaments, due to the risks posed by COVID-19. In the, A great rivalry exists between members of the two teams in the 52, 57, 69, 75 and +91 kilogram divisions, which allows coaches to observe the principal technical shortcomings and strengths of their students in sparring bouts against experienced opponents with impressive endurance and skills in exchanging punches.

In addition, Cuba’s third and fourth ranked fighters, many of whom are under 23 years of age, have the opportunity to improve facing off against opponents who have won Olympic and world medals.

Alberto Puig de la Barca, president of the Cuban Boxing Federation, told Jit that both teams’ coaching staffs have expressed very positive opinions about the training sessions. A mini tournament was held to end the encounter between the two powerhouses that are studying each other carefully, both intent on taking the crown in Tokyo.

(Taken from Granma)

Borrero reached the top spot in his weight category after being proclaimed World Champion during the competition held recently in Las Vegas, the United States, where he secured six victories.

The athlete from Santiago de Cuba, three-times Pan American Champion and Central American and Caribbean victor in Veracruz 2014, was unrivalled during the U.S. tournament, where he defeated one of the favourites, Azerbaijan ‘s Rovshan Bayramov, multi world medallist and Beijing 2008 and London 2012 silver medallist, through technical superiority during the final of the competition.

His team mate, the stellar Mijaín López (130kg) ceded first place to Riza Kalyaap of Turkey, who defeated the Cuban in the bout for the gold in Las Vegas and is the only Greco-roman wrestler – in addition to Russia’s Khasam Baroev, three times World Champion – on the planet to have claimed the title on two or more occasions over the last 12 years.

Cuba also saw two of its other wrestlers place in the top 20 world rankings of their respective weight categories: Miguel Martínez (66kg) in 19th place and Yasmany Lugo (98kg) 14th, in divisions dominated by Frank Staebler of

Germany and Artur Aleksanyan, from Armenia.

Leading the rankings in the remaining categories are Razul Chunayev (71kg) from Azerbaijan; Roman Vlasov (75kg) from Russia; Selcuk Cebi (80kg) from Turkey; and Ukraine’s Zhan Belenyuk (85kg).

(Granma)

The boxing saw the biggest gains for the island with six titles, won by Andy Cruz, in the 56 kilogram division, Lázaro Álvarez (60kg), Arlen López (75kg), Julio César la Cruz (81kg), Erislandy Savon (91kg) and Lenier Peró (91+kg).

Cuban boxers also added four silver medals to the total with Joahnys Argilagos (49kg), Yosbany Veitía (52kg), Yasnier Toledo (64kg) and Roniel Iglesias (69kg), who were affected in some cases by questionable decisions from the judges.

Cuba led the medal count in the canoeing competitions, winning a total of six gold, two silver and two bronze medals, with outstanding individual performances from Jorge García and Yusmari Mengana.

García dominated the Canoeing Flat K1 1000m event and also played his part in the triumphs in the K2 and K4 events of the same distance, while Mengana took the title in the women’s K1 200m and 500m, in addition to winning the K2 500m together with Yurieni Guerra.

Athletics also made a major contribution to the island’s gains at the Games, thanks to the conquest of five gold, three silver and one bronze medal. Richer Pérez (marathon), Pedro Pablo Pichardo (triple jump), Yarisley Silva (pole vault), Denia Caballero (discus throw) and Yorgelis Rodríguez (heptathlon) excelled in their respective events, each securing the gold medal.

The wrestling also constituted a mainstay of Cuba’s performance in the Canadian city, providing a total of four gold, three silver and six bronze medals. Mijaín López led the way for the Cuban gladiators winning his fourth Pan American title in the 130kg division of the Greco-Roman wrestling, in which Yasmany Lugo (98kg) also triumphed, while Reineris Salas (86kg) and Yowlys Bonne (57kg) excelled in the freestyle events.

The taekwondo and judo events also contributed to the golden total for the Cuban delegation, both with three titles, although the latter was the most successful sport overall, with all 14 athletes reaching the podium (three gold, three silver, eight bronze), while the former saw five medals (three gold, two bronze) from just seven participants.

The judokas to reach the top were Idalys Ortiz (78+kg), Dayaris Mestre (48kg) and Magdiel Estrada (73kg), while Yania Aguirre (49kg) José Ángel Cobas (80kg) and Rafael Alba (80+kg) were crowned in the taekwondo.

Rowing contributed two gold, three silver and two bronze medals, with an outstanding performance by the key Cuban figure Ángel Fournier, who won two titles in the single and the double sculls events, together with Eduardo Rubio, as well as securing second place in the quadruple sculls.

Artistic Gymnastics saw Cuba return to the Pan American podium through Marcia Videaux, surprise champion in the women’s vault, together with her team mate Manrique Larduet in the men’s competition, who also secured another two silver medals and one bronze, to become the athlete with the most medals of the Cuban delegation.

Meanwhile, the weightlifting made history with the first ever medal for Cuba in the women’s division, with Marina Rodríguez (63kg) taking the silver, while Adriel La O (77kg) and Yoelmis Hernández (85kg) secured the gold in their categories, with the latter followed in second place by his compatriot Yadier Núñez.

In the shooting events, Eglys de la Cruz and Reynier Estopiñán added two gold medals in the women’s and men’s 50m rifle 3 positions.

Likewise, in the diving competitions the duo of José Antonio Guerra and Jeinkler Aguirre starred in one of the most notable performances, taking the synchronized 10m platform title, to everyone’s surprise.

Among the team sports, female pair Lianma Flores and Leila Martínez provided Cuba with the silver medal for beach volleyball, while Nivaldo Díaz and Sergio González took the bronze medals in the men’s competition. The island’s female basketball team and the men’s baseball team also took the bronze.

Cuba also won medals in the badminton, cycling, fencing, rhythmic gymnastics and karate competitions.

The island fell short of its performance in the previous edition of the Games in Guadalajara (Mexico) in 2011, where it gained a total of 58 gold medals, 35 silver and 43 bronze, and lost out on the second place maintained since the 1971 edition in Cali (Colombia), with the exception of Havana 1991, when they finished top of the medal count.

(Diario Granma)

Teófilo Stevenson and Muhammad Ali

By Nelson Acosta

HAVANA (Reuters) – Cuba paid its respects on Tuesday to the late boxer Teofilo Stevenson, one of the greatest Olympians of all time who turned down the chance to fight Muhammad Ali at the height of both fighters powers.

Stevenson, who won three gold medals as a heavyweight boxer and turned down multi-million dollar offers to turn professional

after emerging as a huge talent at the 1972 Munich Games, died of a heart attack on Monday at the age of 60.

Stevenson, born into a poor family in Puerto Padre in the eastern province of Las Tunas, won gold medals at the Munich Games in 1972, Montreal in 1976 and Moscow in 1980.

He also won three successive world amateur championship titles and missed out on a shot at a fourth Olympic title when Cuba boycotted the Los Angeles Games in 1984.

“Cuba has lost a symbol,” said Alcides Sagarra, Stevenson’s former trainer.

In a 20-year career, Stevenson stood out for a devastating right, skillful movements in the ring and sportsmanship which won him a Fair Play trophy.

Stevenson, widely regarded as the best amateur heavyweight ever, fellow Cuban Felix Savon and Hungarian Lazlo Papp are the only amateur boxers to have won three successive Olympic titles.

“Teofilo belonged to Cuba and the world. Those who haven’t heard of Teofilo haven’t lived,” said Savon.

U.S. boxing promoters tried in the late 1970s to tempt Stevenson to fight then world champion Ali for $5 million in what they said would be the “fight of the century” but it never happened as he rejected the offer.

“What’s a million dollars compared to the love of eight million Cubans?” Stevenson was quoted as saying as a 20-year-old after his first Olympic gold in Munich, expressing his loyalty to the Cuban revolution which outlawed professional sport.

“I wouldn’t change a piece of Cuban soil for all the money they could give me”

Glory be to his memory forever!

Fidel Castro Ruz
June 12, 2012
3:15 p.m.

Lopes will compete for the first time in Guadalajara, after proclaiming himself World Champion in Baku, Azerbaijan. His first contender will be Dominican Ricardo Garcia.

Another two prestigious boxers will fight here for the first time: Cubans Rosniel Iglesias (64 kg) and Emilio Correa (75), World Champion in Rome 2009 and runner-up in the Olympic Games in Beijing, respectively.

Iglesias will fight against Mexican Juan Pablo Romero, while Correa will fight against US boxer Damarias Russel.

Besides the mentioned divisions, there will be competition in the 49, 56 and 91 kg divisions for men, and 51 kg for women.

(Prensa Latina)