Cubans in opening of Central Caribbean weightlifting qualifier

Havana, Dec 8.- Raibet Machado and Otto Oñate, in the 60-kilogram division, will be the first Cubans in action this Monday at the start of the qualifying tournament for the Santo Domingo 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games.

According to the schedule released by the competition organizers, based in the Dominican Republic itself, male athletes in the 65-kilogram category will also compete on the opening day. Arley Calderón will make his debut there.

Among the women, on this same date, Ludia Montero (48 kg) will be the first to step onto the platform set up in the José Joaquín Puello Pavilion of the capital's Parque del Este sports complex.

Nearly 264 competitors representing 23 countries were registered for the event, which offers 160 spots (80 per gender) for the regional multi-sport event scheduled from July 24 to August 8 of next year.

This competition is the only one of its kind scheduled for this sport. Women will compete in the 48, 53, 58, 63, 69, 77, 86, and over 86-kilogram categories. Men will compete in the 60, 65, 71, 79, 88, 94, 110, and over 110-kilogram categories. (Text and photo: JIT)