Cuba welcomes Olympic athletes as heroes
HAVANA: AUGUST 10 – A plane carrying the Cuban Olympic delegation at Tokyo 2020 landed in Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport on Monday, to be greeted by Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and other high-ranking officials.
“Every title enhanced the national pride in a complex context for Cuba, where there has been a call to destroy the revolution. In the middle of all this, you have given a dignified response,” said Diaz-Canel.
Four-time Olympic champion Mijain Lopez thanked sports fans on the island for their support over the past few days.
“We will continue fighting and gaining medals for the country,” said the Cuban wrestler on TV.
With seven medals, namely two silver and five bronze, Cuba ranked 14th in the general medal count at the Tokyo Games.
The members of the delegation, who had already been immunized against COVID-19 with locally-made vaccines, were transferred to a hotel in Havana for quarantine.
Among the locals cheering them on was Mayra Pacheco, a 37-year-old state worker from Havana’s Boyeros district.
“I am proud of our athletes’ performance. They inspire us to continue to work hard for the betterment of the country,” she said.
Local state TV broadcast the welcoming ceremony to the delegation as Olympic athletes made headlines around the country.
Cuba has already amassed 241 medals since its Olympic debut at the 1900 Paris Games, ranking first among Latin American and Caribbean countries in the competition’s history.
-XINHUA
