Juan Carley Vazquez

Cali, Colombia, December 1 (RHC)-- Juan Carley Vázquez, this year's world junior champion in Nairobi, leads the group of six Cubans who will seek medals this Wednesday at the First Pan American Junior Games Cali Valle-2021.

Standard bearer of the Cuban delegation to the multisport event, Juan Carley, 19 years old and native of Boyeros, in the Cuban capital, is one of the candidates for the podium, in an event in which the 20-year-old Argentine Nazareno Sasia, South American senior runner-up with 19.79 m, is the favorite.

Juan Carley, who has just left the junior category, has a personal best of 20.32, but with the 6kg bullet (for juniors), since with the senior implement (7.26 kg) he has barely thrown in a previous competition and has a record of 17.60m.

"He has trained well, he is in good shape, but it is good for them to know that it will be only his second competition with the 7.26 kg bullet (for adults) and there are some competitors with better marks than him", warned his coach Misleidys González in declarations to the Cuban radio in the Pascual Guerrero stadium, in Cali.

The other Cubans who will be in the finals on Wednesday are long jumpers Maikel Vidal and Daniel Mustelier in the long jump, Daily Cooper and María de Lourdes Calderín, in 800 m, and Yan Carlos Hernández in the decathlon.

In preliminary events, Marys Adela Patterson will compete in the heptathlon, Greisys Roble and Keily Pérez in the 100m hurdles and Leonardo Castillo in the 400m.

Cuba won its first medals in Pan American athletics on Tuesday, in the women's discus, with Silinda Morales winning the title and Malany Matheus winning the silver medal.

The four runners in the 400 hurdles had a great performance, qualifying their four athletes for the finals, while Yan Carlos Hernández, in the decathlon, finished the first five events in fourth place.

Cali Valle 2021 athletics will be attended by more than 400 athletes from 31 countries.