The Cuban swimmer Dainé Pedré announced this Friday that she will not be participating in the 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo, not due to a lack of sporting level, but because the Cuban State was unable to send her to the only qualifying tournament she had access to.
In a video posted on her Instagram profile, the 20-year-old athlete from Havana explained that her only way to qualify was to participate in the Open in the Dominican Republic, but the political and economic crisis in the country prevented her from doing so.
"The only way I could qualify was by going to the Open in the Dominican Republic. But unfortunately, I couldn't go due to the political and economic situation in the country. They simply couldn't send me," he stated.
Pedré had returned to high performance after two years away, with a clear goal: to reach the Central American Games. "After two years away from high performance, I decided to swim again. I returned with a clear objective, to qualify for the Central American Games," he stated in the video.
What hurts the most, in her own words, is that the issue was not athletic. "The saddest thing is that it wasn't due to lack of skill, but rather lack of opportunity," said the swimmer who specializes in breaststroke and individual medley.
He revealed that he learned of his exclusion about two months ago. "I found out two months ago that all my preparation had been in vain, all those hours of training, the journey made to get to practice, and every sacrifice were overshadowed by the political and economic situation my country is facing," he wrote in the video description.
The achievements of Dainé Pedré support her competitive level. At the V Alba Games in Venezuela 2023, she was the top medal winner for Cuba, earning two golds in the 200 m and 400 m individual medley and a silver in the 200 m breaststroke, becoming the first Cuban swimmer to be a champion at those Games.
Previously, at the I Caribbean Games in Guadeloupe 2022, he had won silver in the 200 m individual medley and bronze in the 100 m breaststroke.
The case of Pedré is not isolated. The crisis in Cuban sports has impacted more established figures: Cuba's best swimmer, Elisbet Gámez, stepped away from the pools in 2024 for similar reasons of exhaustion and lack of proper conditions.
For the Santo Domingo 2026 Games, Cuba has qualified just four Cuban swimmers for the pool competition: Vladimir Hernández, Yadiel Estrada, Laurent Estrada, and Andrea Becali, all through spots automatically assigned in the COSADO technical manual, without having attended any qualifiers.
This situation reflects the systematic decline of high-performance sports on the Island. While China donates sports equipment to Cuba as a symbolic gesture, the reality is that athletes who are capable of competing internationally cannot travel to qualifying tournaments due to a lack of state funding.
Pedré, however, did not close the door. "Yes, of course it hurt me, of course it bothers me, but unfortunately I don't have the solution in my hands. This time it couldn't be done, but this is not over," he concluded. The Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo 2026 will take place from July 24 to August 8.
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