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The five-time Cuban Olympic champion Mijaín López is training young Chinese athletes in Beijing, on an advisory mission lasting approximately two months that the Cuban regime and the Chinese government present as a symbol of the alliance between the two countries.
This Saturday, the Chinese ambassador to Cuba, Hua Xin, posted a photograph of López alongside three young Chinese wrestlers in a training gym on his X account, with the message: "China and Cuba, united in the struggle. The five-time Olympic champion Mijaín López trains young athletes in China."
López traveled to China in mid-March along with his coach Raúl Trujillo with the stated aim of preparing the Chinese national team for the Asian Championship, scheduled for April 6 to 12 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
On March 14, both visited the Embassy of Cuba in China, where López went beyond the sports context to highlight the political connection between the two countries: "The relationship that has existed between Cuba and China, not only the sports side, but the political side as well. I believe this is something that should be acknowledged."
Trujillo, for his part, emphasized that the mission has an institutional purpose for the regime: "I will always work for Cuba because I remain the vice president of the Cuban Wrestling Federation and the technical chief of the federation. This mission now falls to me to develop, but always in favor, making agreements for Cuba, seeking training bases, and gathering information."
López's presence in China reflects a systematic pattern of using the fighter as an ambassador for the regime abroad.
In January 2026, the regime showcased Mijain Lopez at FITUR 2026 in Madrid as the central figure of its tourism strategy, which drew criticism from exiles and activists for the propagandistic use of sports heroes to cover up the country's crisis.
In December 2024, Raúl Castro personally awarded him the title of Hero of the Republic of Cuba —the highest civilian honor of the State— in a ceremony also attended by Miguel Díaz-Canel.
López is also a member of the National Assembly of People's Power and has dedicated medals to Fidel Castro and the Revolution throughout his career. After winning his fourth gold medal in Tokyo, he declared: "I want to dedicate it to our undefeated commander in chief, who was the one who brought sports to Cuba for the first time."
However, in September 2025, in an interview with the AFP agency from São Paulo, the athlete acknowledged that Cuban sports are going through a very delicate moment and warned that "we have lost many talents and the training centers have deteriorated."
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