ASUNCION. — Without a doubt, today will go down in the books as the most successful day for Cuba in the Second Pan American Junior Games. There were expected victories and pleasant surprises, and once again, the girls were responsible for the most important contributions to the medal count.
As the countdown to the torch stopping burned on, the Cuban delegation accelerated, driven by the superb performance of its athletes, all of whom were awarded in the competition.
Greili Bencosme (50 kg) and Yaynelis Sanz (57 kg) delivered the most impressive performances on the mat at the Ceo Stadium. Bencosme beat Brazil's Ana Sales 11-0 in the final. Sanz then defeated Mexico's Bertha Rojas 4-2, keeping her promise to retain the crown she won four years ago in the first edition of these competitions.
María Fernanda Santana, the silver medalist who lost in the 62 kg final, and Daynelis Canales (68 kg), who recovered from stumbling in the semifinals to fight until her last breath for her bronze medal, completed the impressive feat.
The women's team was joined by the women's athletics team, which has been the most successful sport in the Cuban competition thus far. Triple jumper Lidsay González defied expectations, winning gold with an impressive jump of 13.95 meters, the best record of her career.
Her teammate, Ariday Girón, also celebrated in the jumping box. With a final jump of 13.43 meters, she earned an unexpected bronze medal. Similarly, high jumper Diosber Hernández earned a gold medal with perfect valid attempts, reaching a height of 2.07 meters.
And not because it was expected was less pleasant the incorporation of weightlifting to the sports that have marked the Cuban delegation's titles; honor that corresponded to Emanuel de la Rosa (79 kg), with only one failed lift in search of an unprecedented weightlifting in his history.
The Asuncion-2025 event is moving towards its end, with the certainty that there are still a good handful of emotions to be experienced and triumphs to be celebrated.
