14ymedio, Havana, 26 July 2022 — Cuban athletics continues to add defeats. To the sporting failure at the XVIII World Athletics Championships that was held in Eugene, Oregon in the United States, where the Cuban delegation didn’t win any medals, is added the escape of the Olympic medalist and world champion of the discus throw, Yaimé Pérez, according to Play-Off Magazine.
The Santiago woman, who won seventh place in the Eugene World Cup, made the decision recently, the same media said. With her there are three members of the Cuban team who left, including the javelinist Yiselena Ballar who left earlier, and the physiotherapist Carlos González Morales who left this Tuesday.
“She is the 19th athlete to abandon the team in international events during 2022. Pérez, 31, won two Diamond Leagues,” journalist Francys Romero said on his social networks: “The official press has blamed the cancellation of the Cuba-MLB agreement for the exodus of baseball players. But these exits in more than five sports prove that the exodus is mainly for survival rather than for a future in sports.”
Yaimé Pérez is number three in the world ranking in the event, according to the Olympics portal. Her personal best is 69.39 meters, which she got in France (2019). In Tokyo 2020, her third Olympic Games, she reached third place.
Her ability has also been demonstrated by winning the Continental Cup in Ostrava (2018) and the U20 World Cup (2010). She also won a silver medal at the Pan American Games in Toronto (2015) and, four years later, won the gold medal in Lima (2019).
Last Friday Mario Planchet, Christian Temprano and Leonardo Acevedo, members of the Futsal Sub 20 team, didn’t show up for Cuba’s semifinal match against Nicaragua in the Uncaf FIFA Forward tournament, which is held in Guatemala.
The delegation informed the Guatemalan authorities of the escape to prevent Cuban soccer players from leaving the country, Prensa Libre published.
Translated by Regina Anavy
____________
COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
