Mijaín López and Idalys Ortiz will be the flag bearers of the Olympic delegation. Omara Durand and Robiel Yankiel Sol will have that privilege in the Paralympic competition.

The confirmation of the Cuban delegations’ intentions and the announcement of their flag bearers for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games were the focus of the topics discussed today on the radio and television programme Mesa Redonda.

Well-known figures such as wrestler Mijaín López and judoka Idalys Ortiz will carry the national flag during the opening of the five rings competition. Sprinter Omara Durand and long jumper Robiel Yankiel Sol were chosen for this privilege in the competition for athletes with disabilities.

In announcing the selection, José Antonio Miranda, Inder’s Director General of High Performance, stressed that these are four of the island’s leading sportsmen and women, who are examples both on and off the competitive stage.

Minutes before, the director ratified the goal of placing the country among the top 20 in the medal table of the Olympic Games, which will be held in the French capital from 26 July to 11 August.

In the case of the Paralympic competition, the objective is for the Cuban team to finish among the top 25, thanks to its performance between 28 August and 8 September.

«We will go with small delegations, but with the objective of demonstrating high efficiency,» ratified Miranda, after detailing aspects such as the preparation carried out so far and what is planned for the few weeks remaining until the start of the actions in the City of Light.

«In general, the critical route planned and the progress of the preparation are evaluated as good and the mood is very positive,» he explained.

He said that so far 46 athletes in 14 sports have qualified for the first of these events, although the final number is expected to be around 60-61 in 16 disciplines, some more than those registered for Tokyo 2020.

The qualification process, considered to be the most complex ever faced for this type of event, ends on 30 June. After that date, the places in the sports that have not yet completed the process will be made official.

Miranda regretted the non-inclusion of a team sport, among the proposed goals and not achieved by the men’s volleyball team, the most likely to achieve it.

«We knew that it was a much more demanding qualification process than the Olympic Games and we couldn’t do it,» he admitted.

The highest authority of Inder’s high performance highlighted the work deployed in each sport so that they can arrive in the best possible shape for the key days of their competitions.

In this sense, he emphasised how hard it has been to complete this extraordinary effort in the midst of the complex situation the country is going through, aggravated by the effects of the intensified economic and financial siege imposed by the United States government.

«All the qualified athletes are guaranteed to complete the last stage of their preparation in Europe, and despite the economic difficulties, we have managed to participate in the events we needed,» he said.

PARALYMPICS: ANOTHER BIG CHALLENGE

«Cuba has 14 qualified athletes in six sports and has yet to complete the process in para-athletics, para-bowling, para-cycling and para-judo,» said Jorge Reinaldo Palma, head of the Department of Sport for People with Disabilities at Inder, referring to the state of preparation for the Paralympic Games.

He set the final total number of members of the delegation between 23 and 26 and assured that they have faced the most complex qualification system in the history of these competitions.

«We have prepared very well, we are in good health and nothing compromises our participation. We can assure that the objectives have been met with significant rigour,» confirmed Palma.

He also confirmed that Omara will be determined to retain her crowns in the three distances: 100m, 200m and 400m in the T12 category. Robiel will be equally determined to shine in the long jump for T46 competitors.