Beach Volleyball
Cuba’s Karell Piña and Daisel Quesada pulled a convincing 2-0 (21-16, 21-18) victory against Canada’s Garrett May and Daniel Dearing in the men’s gold medal match of the Punta Cana Beach Volleyball Tournament, the 2nd stop of the 2015 NORCECA Circuit.
The veteran Piña combined with the young Quesada to win their 6 matches over the weekend --3 in pool play and 3 in the knock-out round.
The award ceremony took place immediately after the conclusion of the match with the participation of Cristobal Marte Hoffiz, president of NORCECA, Ramón Garcia, president of the Dominican Volleyball Federation, Ernesto Veloz, president of the organizing committee, and Steve Owen, NORCECA supervisor.
FIFA U-23
The Cuba's U-23 football team maintains its triumphant step today in the Caribbean Olympic qualifiers to Rio de Janeiro-2016, after its 3-2 win over Antigua and Barbuda.
With that victory, Cuba leads Group 2 of the North and Central Caribbean area, to be held a tournament in the United States from October 1st to 13th whose top two qualify for Brazil.
Now, Cuba will face Jamaica in the forthcoming final phase of qualifying for the Caribbean Union (CFU) for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro 2016.
That bilateral match will be held in August, but CFU has not defined the venue yet. Cuba and Jamaica advanced to that stage thanks to their victories in Group 2 and 3, respectively.
Mass Sports Practice a Must in Cuba
Cuba's comeback to the world's sports elite depends on its rescue of mass sports practice from early childhood, said two times Olympic champion Alberto Juantorena.
In remarks to journalists in Havana, Juantorena said that in addition to international practice, foreign contracts and other incentives, it was urgent to go back to the grass roots, scout for talent and maintain the existing facilities.
It is not possible to develop good athletics if the track is in poor condition, and you cannot play basketball if there are not baskets, Juantorena told the press, however, the Olympic champion in Montreal 1976 praised the talent of athletes, coaches and physical education teachers countrywide.
Baseball
It seems Yuniesky Gurriel loves to play in Canada. After Sunday, Gurriel averages was 356 in the Canadian-American League.
He has 21 hits in 59 at bats in 17 games, and 12 RBIs, 6 walks, and only 3 strikeouts. Santiago’s outfielder Alexei Bell also stands out after being fully recovered from his latest injury, which kept him away of the regular lineup for more than a week. Bell is hitting .315 in 19 games, with 13 runs, 2 homers, and 8 RBIs.
Both are hitting 3rd and clean-up in the Capitals’ lineup. Quebec’s team was in the 1st place and now, having lost 3 games in a row, the team dropped to the 2nd place with a 19-14 record.
The Quebec Capitals are awaiting another Cuban player; namely, first baseman and outfielder Edilse Silva. This Monday, the Capitals will face the Ottawa Champions.
School Athletics
The 3rd International School Athletics Cup recently held in the Dominican Republic, which hosted sports delegations from 14 nations, closed today with a great victory for the locals.
The event took place at the capital's Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Center and was attended by school athletes from Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, United States, Guatemala, Granada, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Palestine, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic.
Chile will attempt to show the superiority of its offensive arguments and host status when it faces Peru in the 1st semifinal of the Copa America of Football.
In search of its 1st crown of the world's oldest soccer tournament, the local team reached the semifinal stage of the discussion of the title to beat in the quarterfinals to Uruguay by 1-0 closed margin in a duel held at the National Stadium of Santiago de Chile.
In the history of these bilateral caps, Chile takes a slight lead of 7 wins, 6 losses and 6 draws, so Peru could achieve a tie.
Cuba Pays Tribute Again to Mexican Sports Legend Ana Guevara
The Cuban sports press paid tribute today to Mexican legend athlete Ana Guevara, who is visiting Havana as part of a parliamentary delegation from her country.
The Union of Journalists of Cuba (UPEC) added a new award to the vast amount of medals won by Guevara (in Sonora 1977), this time on occasion of UPEC's 50th anniversary.
A decade ago, at local Prensa Latina news agency, Guevara was honored with the award for the most outstanding sportswoman of Latin America, after her victory at the World Cup in Paris.
Guevara, also Olympic medalist in Athens 2004, has made incursions into the communications field as a commentator of athletics, and currently chairs the Mexico's Senate Committee on Migration Issues.
