Many years ago, I listened to the mythical second-base player Félix Isasi said that every time he went to compete abroad, despite all the good things, the desire to be back in his country and with his loved ones grew as the days went by.
“Nothing beats meeting with your family and friends, it was my main interest, together we sitting in the stands of the stadium of Palmar de Junco, close to my house, and talk baseball with the people from my neighborhood, who would receive me with their arms open every time.”
If my memory is right, I never heard Isasi speak about gifts. He must have been distracted, overflown by his love to baseball and by the love of his people, which were the only things that mattered to him in the end.
He often recalls his meeting with Fidel Castro in 1970, about the hidden ball in the final game of the Baseball World Championship in Cartagena, Colombia. “I marked out to that American, who later wanted to argue’ that out to me, but it was out.That play put usout of a predicament, and we won the championship. When we came back, the Commander in Chief congratulated me and wanted me to tell him every detail.”
This story resurfaces now, especially because, in addition to the respect, admiration and appreciation received worldwide, Cuba’s 14th place in the 2020 Olympic Games of Tokyo, Japan also earns the envy of those who hate the Cuban Revolution and the Cuban people.
Now they make fun of the simplicity of the gifts some athletes are presented with in their communities and, in an attempt to hurt our national pride, they say that in other countries of the region they had planned to present large sums of money to those who became Olympic champions or ended up in the podium.
This is nothing more than disdain for the humble ones. They try to ridicule the pictures that show tables covered with humble gifts such as homemade plates and other simple presents offered with gratitude by the neighbours or the loved ones of the athletes.
There lies the secret of their tantrum and their frustration. They are upset that there are people who are not dazzled by material things, who do believe that money is not a thing. They are bothered by the fact that Cuba, a poor country with scarce resources and under the tightest grip of circumstances and the economic, financial and commercial blockade imposed on Cuba by the United States, is the country of Latin America with more medals in the Olympic Games, beating even rich countries such as Canada, Norway and Spain.
It is an unprecedented deed, worthy of the Hall of Fame. In the end, I wonder what they are looking for with these new tricks that seek to diminish the importance of the affection and gratitude the people show when welcoming their champions, a noble gesture that holds more richness that all the money in the world.
Like the mythical second-baseFélix Isasi, there are hundreds of thousands of Cuban athletes and champions that only feel at home in their neighborhood in Cuba.
Young boxer and new champion in the Tokyo Olympic Games, Andy Cruz was once asked if he has not felt tempted to go professional where he would be paid extravagant sums of money, and he answered, “When I won the world championship in Hamburg, they got in touch with me and proposed me to sign a contract to go professional.But, figure out, what would I say to my people, to the people of Alacranes (his hometown). If I dare to do so, I am sure my mom would grab a fly and drag me back by the ear.”
Translatedby ESTI
