Radio Cadena Agramonte emisiora de Camagüey
Havana, January 15 - Caibarién has made its waters available to Cuban sailing, and for years has seen generations of sailors train and grow.The story of Mary Rosy DíazUrbay's return and success is part of that tradition.
At the end of 2025, the 28-year-old from Villa Clara secured her place at the 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo, after finishing ninth at the Sunfish World Championship in Ecuador.
"That was a tough competition, very high quality, with a large number of competitors. It was my first competition at that level of demand and excellence," the young woman recalled in an exclusive interview with JIT.
According to DíazUrbay, the possibility of qualifying for the Central American and Caribbean Games was something she considered before the event.
“We knew our rivals and who was vying for qualifying positions; from there, we developed our strategies for the regattas. It was a wonderful and challenging experience, and I’m very happy with the result,” she stated.
For the young sailor, this victory is more than just a sporting achievement.
“It’s very difficult to reach a world event facing the difficulties and lack of resources we encounter. But it has been an opportunity to demonstrate that with hard work, goals can be achieved,” she asserted.
Fascinated by sailing since the age of ten, she trained in the ILCA 6 class;however, life had other plans for her.After five years on the national team, which she joined at age 14, she retired to finish her university studies.Today, she is a graduate in industrial engineering.
Shortly afterward, she was surprised by the hiatus caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, and then came motherhood.Her return to high-performance competition in January of last year has been an act of courage.
With a young daughter, and after seven years away from elite competition, Mary Rosy not only returned to the helm, but she did so in a class new to her: the Sunfish.
Preparing in record time for crucial competitions in a different boat became her immediate goal.
"It's a class similar to, yet very different from, the ILCA 6, in which I specialized. I'm motivated by the challenge of something new," confessed the 2015 Atlantic Games champion in Spain.
Heading towards Santo Domingo 2026, the Villa Clara native is both realistic and ambitious."We have to train a lot, which is complicated because we only have two Sunfish boats. The competition will be tough, but we'll do our best," she affirmed.
Following in the footsteps of the 2023 San Salvador champion, JaimetRuano, who is her friend and mentor, brings both pressure and motivation.
“What we need to do now is a lot of physical training to get into peak form and refine the details that let us down at the World Championships. We’ll try to match or come close to the feat we achieved at the last Games,” she added.
Under the guidance of Vicente de la Guardia, whom she calls her “super coach,” in charge of her physical and technical-tactical preparation, the engineer aspires to continue reaping success in her sport.
However, she feels satisfied with her achievements and grateful to those who support her in her sporting career, although she admits that she has to “steal” time from the sea to dedicate time to her daughter, her husband, her parents, and her sister.
“My family is everything to me, and I consider myself privileged to have them supporting me at all times. It motivates me to improve and keep sailing,” she stated. (Text and Photo: Cubasí)
