The Cuban duo of Damián Gómez and Eblis Veranes won the silver medal this Sunday in the men's category at the eighth stop of the 2026 NORCECA Continental Beach Volleyball Tour, held in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, while their compatriots Kailin Garrido and Maykelin Drik finished in fourth place in the women's category.
In the men's final, the Cuban duo lost to the Mexicans Carlos Andrés Ayala and Inés Lares in three sets, with scores of 19-21, 21-12, and 12-15. The first set was highly contested, Cuba clearly dominated the second, but the Mexicans regained control in the third to take the gold.
Before the final, Gómez and Veranes had defeated the Dominicans Hayerling De Jesús and Oscar Martínez in the semifinals by 2-0, with scores of 21-15 and 21-13, not dropping a single set.
The men's bronze went to Puerto Ricans Diego Rosich and William Rivera, who came back against the Dominican competitors De Jesús and Martínez to win 2-1 (17-21, 21-13, 15-12).
In the women's division, Garrido and Drik reached the semifinals, where they were defeated by Puerto Ricans Keishlyann Sánchez and Allanis Navas in three sets. In the bronze medal match, they faced the Mexicans Susana Torres and Abril Flores, and lost again, 1-2, with set scores of 17-21, 21-18, and 12-15, finishing outside the podium.
What makes the result even more striking is that, in the group stage of the same tournament, Garrido and Drik had defeated those same Mexican players 2-1 (19-21, 21-19, 15-9), reflecting the close level between both pairs.
The women's gold went to American Ella Connor and Erin Inskeep, who crushed Puerto Rico in the final with identical scores of 21-12 in both sets.
The silver medal won by Gómez and Veranes takes on greater significance when considering the context of Cuban beach volleyball: in February 2026, the star duo Noslen Díaz and Jorge Alayo disengaged from INDER due to unpaid international prizes exceeding 107,000 dollars, leaving Gómez and Veranes as the main male Cuban representatives on the circuit.
This is not the first time the couple has reached the top of the continental podium: in December 2025, they won silver in the NORCECA Tour final, held in Juan Dolio against the Canadians Shackter and Pickett.
The season has not yet concluded. The last stop of the NORCECA 2026 Tour, scheduled to take place in Juan Dolio from December 14 to 18, will offer double points and will be crucial for qualification for the 2027 Pan American Games in Lima, where NORCECA will distribute seven men's and seven women's spots.
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