Orlandito Martínez in Munich-72

Havana, September 22 (RHC)-- Former boxer Orlando Martinez, the first Olympic champion in Cuban sports after the triumph of the Revolution, was buried Wednesday in the Inder pantheon at the Colón necropolis in Havana.

Orlandito, as he was affectionately called in the boxing world, died on Tuesday at the age of 75 after battling for some time against Alzheimer's disease.

During the funeral, his status as a worthy Cuban was highlighted, beyond the merits that made him famous as a boxer.

Next to the pantheon of INDER, relatives and colleagues said a moving farewell to the man who wasted technique and courage to be crowned as Olympic champion in Munich 1972 and in the Pan American Games of Mexico 1975.

"We say goodbye not only to the outstanding athlete, but also to the committed revolutionary, the friend and the jovial, smiling man, always characterized by his humility," said the president of the Cuban Boxing Federation, Alberto Puig de la Barca.

He also highlighted the responsibility with which the three-time tournament champion Córdova Cardín served in that body, and assured that his legacy will be a source of inspiration for current and future generations.

INDER executives, headed by the acting vice president Oliet Rodríguez and the general director of High Performance José Antonio Miranda, led the last farewell to the so-called "Zurdo de Juanelo", nickname by which he was known for the neighborhood where he was born.

Linked to boxing since 1963 in the capital's Luyanó Moderno gymnasium, he also participated in the Olympic Games of Mexico 1968 and Montreal 1976, won bronze in the Central American Games of Santo Domingo 1974 and several national belts.  

Born on September 2, 1946, after retiring from active sports, he dedicated himself to the noble task of teaching, from which he also deserved praise inside and outside the island.