The Cuban triple jumperJordan Diaz, one of Cuba's strongest Olympic medal hopes, abandoned the national delegation in Europe.
Díaz, who was already qualified for the Olympic Games in Japan, stayed in Spain this week and will not compete in the great event.
The information was confirmed to the weeklyJit by José Antonio Miranda, director of High Performance of the National Sports Institute (INDER).
Sports journalist Andy Lans broke the news days ago, but it was not until now that the Cuban authorities confirmed it.
"LAST MINUTE. Sources in Spain confirm to me the decision of triple jumper Jordan Díaz to stay in Iberian lands once the Castellón Meeting is over. Jordan, who did not compete in the Meeting, escaped at the same airport before leaving for another tournament" , Lans announced on his Twitter account.
The jumper, born in Havana 20 years ago, was one of Cuba's main bets for a medal in the Olympics. In his record, he exhibits thegold medal at the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games and the U18 World Youth title in Nairobi, Kenya, that year. He also reached second place in the Central American Championships in Barranquilla, Colombia, that same year.
Together with his teammates Andy Díaz and Christian Nápoles, he had to represent the Island at the Olympic Games in the triple jump specialty. For all three, Tokyo was their debut in this type of event.
Andy Díaz, the oldest of the group, participated this week in the Oslo Diamond League, in Norway, where he finished in second place, reportedJit.
After the defection of Jordan Díaz, the Cuban representation in Japan remains at 69 athletes in 15 disciplines. The Caribbean country aspires to be among the top 20 places in the medal table.
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