Cuba has secured the participation of 20 of its athletes at the Río 2016 Summer Olympics, and hopes to conclude the qualifying process with a total of just over 170 places guaranteed.
René Romero, of the high performance department of the National Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation (INDER), told reporters that the Río 2016 spots secured so far are distributed between shooting (7), boxing (5), rowing (3), wrestling (2), pentathlon (2) and canoeing (1), the latter for the three-time Pan American champion Yusmary Mengana.
He added that some 18 track and field athletes possess sufficient track and field records to classify and explained that these and other disciplines such as judo, shooting, taekwondo and cycling continue immersed in the competition for places at the summer event in the so-called Marvelous City of Brazil.
The specialist also mentioned diving, weightlifting, gymnastics, women’s basketball, triathlon, beach volleyball, swimming, fencing, table tennis, archery, badminton and sailing.
Romero noted that a recent seminar for heads of missions held in the Brazilian city itself, set April 29, 2016 as the deadline for accreditation of National Olympic Committees, although pre-registration will take place in May.
The meeting brought together representatives from 202 countries (the International Olympic Committee is composed of 206), allowing Cuban officials to appreciate the good pace of organization, and confirming that July 24 will see the official opening of the Olympic Village, while on August 5 the world will be able to enjoy the live opening ceremony of the competition which will last through August 21.
“We have the conditions to produce a good performance and all our efforts are directed towards that goal,” INDER President, Antonio Becali, stated.
“The prestige of our sports movement is undeniable and we must preserve it,” he stressed, highlighting the work undertaken in order to ensure the island’s athletes are up to the task.
