Reidy Cardona and Leduar Suárez delivered Cuba its fifth gold medal at the XXV Central American and Caribbean Games by winning the men's double scull event this Sunday at the rowing course in Bonao, located in the geographical center of the Dominican Republic.
According to the state sports media JIT in its coverage of Santo Domingo 2026, the Cuban duo controlled the 2,000 meters from start to finish and pulled away from the Mexican boat after surpassing the halfway point of the course, without the latter being able to regain ground.
Cuba crossed the finish line with a time of 6:32.80 minutes. Mexico took the silver with 6:37.39, while Venezuela completed the podium with bronze at 6:39.62.
“We thank everyone who made this medal possible, and I am very happy with this result, because despite the difficulties, we achieved the goal,” declared Cardona at the end of the race.
His boatmate also expressed words of appreciation: "We want to thank everyone for the support we've received and all those who have been working with us to make this moment possible," Suárez stated near the finish line.
Cardona is considered the best rower in Cuba today. At the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, he won silver in double scull, gold in the eight with coxswain, and bronze in the mixed eight with coxswain. He also competed in his first Olympic Games in the single scull event at Paris 2024.
The journey of this Sunday also brought more joy to the Cuban delegation in the water: Raima Ortiz and Loraidis Echavarría claimed silver in the women's double scull event.
Rowing is thus establishing itself as one of the most productive disciplines for Cuba at the start of these Games. On Saturday, Ana Jiménez and Leah Almeida kicked off the Cuban rowing medal count in Bonao with a bronze in the women's lightweight double sculls.
This performance adds to a strong start for Cuba in Santo Domingo 2026, where the delegation of 504 athletes across 42 disciplines aims to rank among the top three in the medal count with at least 67 gold medals, a figure similar to the 74 achieved in San Salvador 2023.
The first gold medal for Cuba in these Games was won by the cyclist Marlies Mejías on Saturday in the women's time trial of 30 kilometers, with a time of 40:15.79.
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