Oscar Sánchez Serra, director of the sports newspaper Jit and official representative of the Cuban delegation at the XXV Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo 2026, confirmed this Saturday the defection of the field hockey player Moisés David Torres Puig, although he tried to frame the event as an exclusively personal decision, without political or social implications.
In statements to the Dominican newspaper El Día, Sánchez Serra acknowledged that the young man left the delegation, but rejected any interpretation linking his departure to living conditions in Cuba or to a situation of vulnerability.
"He is the goalkeeper of the field hockey team. And he has separated himself from the Cuban delegation," stated the official, who argued that such cases are part of the migration processes occurring in different countries.
Sánchez Serra insisted that the athlete traveled to the Dominican Republic with all his needs covered by the Cuban government.
"This boy has come here with all his food requirements. He has been guaranteed by the Cuban government. And the boy is not a beggar. He is well-prepared, but he has personally decided to change his life project," he declared.
However, the official version contrasts with the call for help made hours later by the athlete's family. Torres Puig's brother publicly requested assistance from activist and reporter Magdiel Jorge Castro, stating that the young man was left alone after leaving the delegation and that he lacked documents.
"Please, this is my brother. His name is Moisés Torres Puig. He has no one and no passport. Please help him," wrote the relative.
During the interview, Sánchez Serra also denied that the goalkeeper could face reprisals if he decided to return to Cuba.
"No, neither for an athlete nor for a citizen. There are many citizens who have been repatriated," he stated, although he clarified that those returning undergo medical evaluations.
Torres Puig, 21 years old and originally from Las Tunas, was the second goalkeeper and the youngest player of the Cuban men's field hockey team. On Friday, he became the first athlete to leave the Cuban delegation during the Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo, even before the official opening ceremony.
According to the athlete himself in an audio released after his escape, he took advantage of a moment when the team was attending as spectators at a women's national team match to execute a carefully prepared plan.
"I was very nervous about being discovered. I felt like they suspected something, but I asked for ice, saying I had hit my arm with a ball during practice, and that eased things up a bit," he recounted.
The young man explained that he then went out to the hallway under the pretext of getting rid of the ice, where a person who was waiting for him handed him civilian clothing. After changing, they both walked out of the stadium to get into a private transport vehicle.
"Later, I said I was going to throw away the ice in a bin that was in the hallway of the stadium, and that’s when I managed to leave with the person who helped me get out of there. We switched clothes and walked out until the Uber arrived," he detailed.
The departure of Torres Puig comes amid the ongoing exodus of Cuban athletes during international competitions. Just a few days earlier, nine of the 12 members of the Cuban canoeing team abandoned the delegation while participating in a World Cup in Montreal, Canada, marking the largest desertion recorded in the history of that sport on the island.
Cuba is participating in the Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo with a delegation of 504 athletes competing in 42 disciplines, with the official goal of finishing among the top three countries in the medal table. The men's field hockey tournament is taking place from July 26 to August 4, which means the Cuban team will face the competition with one less goalkeeper.
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