Leyanis Pérez

Havana, Mar 16 (JIT) - The confirmation that Cuba will be represented only in the triple jump events of the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Nanjing 2025, was made official today by the national commission of that sport.

In a communication sent to the press, it is explained that the reduced group that will attend the event, scheduled between the 21st and 23rd of this month, is made up of Leyanis Perez, Liadagmis Povea, and Lazaro Martinez, who will travel to the venue on the 18th.

Leyanis, from Pinar del Río, has a space reserved for her condition of champion of the World Athletics Indoor Tour 2025 and will arrive as the leader of the ranking this season thanks to the 14.62 meters jump with which she won the meeting in the French city of Lievin, last February 13.

Winner of the Diamond League 2024 and bronze medal at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest 2023, Ricardo Ponce's disciple will try to improve the silver medal she won at the Glasgow 2024 edition, when she jumped 14.90 meters. Her all-time best is set at 14.98 meters, although she also has a 15.16 jump that could not be homologated due to a headwind higher than allowed.

Lázaro, trained by Yoelbi Quesada -as well as Povea-, boasts 17.12 meters as a ceiling in the winter segment and his goal will be to improve the eighth place achieved last year in the Scottish capital.

The Guantanamo native enjoyed the experience of being crowned in these competitions during the Belgrade 2022 version, when he reached 17.64 meters. A year later, outdoors, he would return to a universal podium, with the silver medal obtained in Budapest.

Given the circumstances in the qualifying process, the mark of 16.75 meters that led him to victory in the recent Jesús Molina 2025 Memorial would have guaranteed Andy Hechavarría a place among the contestants in Nanjing.

However, the Holguin-born athlete was left out of the call-up as he did not meet the internal requirements for his incorporation.