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The Cuban volleyball player Noslen Díaz confirmed this Monday that he requested to leave the Cuban federation.
"Until everything was decided regarding how the men's duo would be, I was training. After learning what would happen, I left," Díaz said in exclusive statements to elToque, referring to the separation from his partner Jorge Luis Alayo, who was the first to request a resignation as a protest against unpaid dues.
"I didn't want to keep playing with a new teammate. Now, what I want is to be discharged and get married," he added.
Díaz said he is looking forward to marrying his girlfriend, American volleyball player Kylie Deberg, and hopes to "continue playing abroad soon."
The Cuban beach volleyball duo of Noslén Díaz and Jorge Luis Alayo, ranked among the top ten in the world, has decided to leave the INDER structure after accumulating a debt of over $107,000 in international prize money that, according to specialized reports, has not yet been disbursed to them.
The breakup once again highlights the tensions between elite athletes and state sports institutions that control contracts and prize management, while the Cuban Volleyball Federation and INDER remain silent on the matter, according to Martí Noticias.
The debt would amount to $107,000, according to reports issued by the specialized site CubanSp1ke. The funds do not come from the state budget but from the prizes awarded in international tournaments in which the duo has competed in recent months.
An Announced Breakup
The first to request a resignation was Jorge Luis Alayo. In January, Díaz explained to the independent media elToque that his partner had already decided not to continue under the official structure of Cuban sports.
"I haven't requested to leave, I want to keep playing (...) as for the money that is delayed, it's a payment we are still waiting for and I know they will pay it, because it has happened before. Alayo has indeed decided not to play anymore and is in the process of leaving," stated Díaz, 23 years old.
However, just a month later, Díaz himself also decided to sever ties with the state organization, confirming the definitive break from the duo with the state-controlled sports system.
Historical results
The departure comes at the peak of the couple's competitive performance. Díaz and Alayo finished ninth in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, a notable result for Cuban beach volleyball.
In 2024, they won gold in the Russian Supercup, along with two silver medals, one bronze medal, and a fourth-place finish in five tournaments of the World Pro Tour. They also won the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour in Quintana Roo, Mexico, and finished ninth in the World Championship held in Australia.
These achievements are complemented by the gold medal won at the 2022 Central American and Caribbean Games, the only gold medal for Cuba in that discipline.
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