Cuba Is Ready to Obtain More Medals at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games

Cuban judoka Idalys Ortiz, 2023. Photo: X/ @KarlenRC

July 22, 2024 Hour: 8:42 am

The Cuban team will aim to rank among the top 20 in the medal standings.

Despite the economic crisis induced by the U.S. blockade, Cuba has managed to assemble a team of athletes that will aim to win more medals at the Paris Olympic Games than they did in Tokyo 2020.

Their goal is to repeat a formula that already worked at the Central American Games in San Salvador and the Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, which took place in 2023.

While the Cubans achieved 196 medals in San Salvador and secured third place in the medal standings, they obtained 35 medals in Santiago, Chile, and placed sixth.

Led by their most important active athletes in the Olympic circuit, Greco-Roman wrestler Mijain Lopez and judoka Idalys Ortiz, the Cubans will aim to rank among the top 20 in the medal standings.

Cuba has won more Olympic medals than any country in Latin America, 1/3 in boxing. Despite scarcities fueled by U.S. sanctions, five Cuban boxers prepare to defend Cuba’s boxing legacy at Paris 2024. pic.twitter.com/uBHbgxLAYw
— Belly of the Beast (@bellybeastcuba) July 19, 2024

The strategy, once again, will focus on quality over quantity. So far, 46 island athletes from 14 disciplines have qualified for Paris. Authorities expect the final number to be around 60.

Attention will be focused on two Cuban athletes. Mijain Lopez will seek his fifth consecutive gold medal in the 130 kg category, something unprecedented in sports history. Idalys Ortiz, who has won medals since Beijing 2008, will attempt to win the gold medal again, as she did in London 2012.

The Cuban hopes also rest on boxing with two-time Olympic champions Julio Cesar La Cruz (92 kg) and Arlen Lopez (75 kg). This discipline could also see a historic milestone if they win their third gold medal.