Cuban Hanser Rodríguez
Havana, May 1 (ACN) - With a 28-18 victory over Cyprus, the Cuban men's handball team won the Emerging Countries World Championship, which in its fourth edition was held in the city of Varna, Bulgaria.
The Cuban team came out in the final game determined to make history and won a gold medal that reflects the good work done with the young athletes, who showed their full potential and excellent conditions in this collective sport.
For the second consecutive day, Ronaldo Almeida deserved the distinction of most valuable player of the match, although other details such as the top scorers are not specified.
In that tournament, the Caribbean nation's handball players were more than successful by finishing undefeated with four victories, most of them achieved in an unobjectionable manner.
This Saturday, the representatives of the Island defeated the local Bulgarians 36-29 in the first semifinal of the event, to reach the discussion of the title as it happened four years ago in Georgia.
In that duel, they dominated the first half by just one goal, but in the second half of the game they were far superior to their rivals to guarantee their place in the final.
For the winners, coached by Jover Hernández, Hanser Rodríguez was once again outstanding on offense, with 10 goals, according to Franklin Guevara, national handball commissioner, via WhatsApp.
Last Tuesday, the Cubans defeated the United Kingdom team 32-28 in their debut to start their participation in the tournament on a good footing.
Then, in their second match, they defeated Guatemala 27-17 to lead group C of the qualifying phase.
Rodriguez himself led the offense by scoring seven goals in each of the games, so he was undoubtedly one of the great protagonists in the achievement of the gold medal.
Cuba in 2019 won the silver medal in the III Emerging Nations Handball World Championship, U-24 category, held in Tbilisi, Georgia.
In that match, the Cuban team lost 21-31 to the local Georgians, in the discussion of the golden metal, so this time they were able to win in the final to the delight of the family and fans who follow the results of that discipline here in the country and in the international arena.