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The world of Cuban rodeo mourns the passing of Carlos Mencía González, known throughout the island as Negro Mencía, who died after several months of battling an incurable illness, as reported by the Escambray newspaper from Sancti Spíritus.
Mencía was for decades one of the most beloved figures of the rodeo team from Sancti Spíritus, renowned throughout Cuba for his skill as a madrinero: the elegantly dressed rider who accompanies the show by performing lasso tricks and manganas in front of the grandstand.
His connection with the tracks began in childhood. He preferred to follow the cowboys rather than sit in a classroom, and that choice determined the course of his entire life.
"Since I was young, my life has been connected to the tracks," he confessed in an interview with Escambray, which explores his journey from beginning to end.
When she stopped competing as an athlete, she found a new way to stay in the spotlight through coaching.
"When I stopped being an athlete, I couldn't completely detach myself from the Fair, because my life had always been connected to the rodeo or racing tracks. But the role of the madrina attracted me, and I enjoyed it a lot, as it is a spectacle that has its own audience," he explained.
His trademark was the "manganas," ropes thrown under the arm that the audience requested at every appearance.
"There are those who go to the rodeo to watch the ropers or the bull riders, but I became known for the manganas; when I would perform, the audience would ask for them, here and in other arenas across the country," he recalled.
Mencía visited the main fairs of Cuba: from the International Fair of Rancho Boyeros in Havana to the venues in Manicaragua, Las Tunas, Bayamo, and Camagüey.
For his work, he preferred quarter horses, as they were more docile and better suited for herding cattle.
Beyond the tracks, his life was marked by solidarity: he was a voluntary blood donor and a sponsor for many years of the Home for Children without Family Support in Sancti Spíritus.
This morning, at 9:30, the final procession was scheduled to take place: the cortege would depart from the funeral home headed to the cemetery, accompanied by horses, mariachis, cowboys, family, and friends.
The page El Más Puro Rodeo Cubano called on all cowboys who could attend on horseback to arrive before that time to join the farewell.
On Tuesday, Manuel Jiménez Nazco, a cultural promoter, announcer, and historian of the Spíritus rodeo, also passed away, turning that day into a double mourning for the cowboy community of the province.
Jiménez Nazco, known as Manolito, came from a family that founded the rodeo in Sancti Spíritus and was regarded as one of the best announcers on the island.
The rodeo community bid farewell to Negro Mencía with words that capture the essence of his life: "You risked everything your whole life, and that, in itself, was a great triumph. You earned something far more valuable: an eternal place in the hearts of your family and friends."
"Let us bid farewell to Negro Mencía as he lived: among horses, friends, and the affection of his people," was the call that gathered the Cuban cowboy community to give him the farewell he deserved.
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