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74 years have pbaded and the wait is over. Barranquilla is ready to make the country a welcoming city for the Central American and Caribbean Games, an event in which Arenosa has experience in the organization, since it hosted the 1944 edition. Although the fair is much older than Pumarejo Bridge, built in 1974, a lot of water has pbaded there since times until this Thursday, when the Roberto Meléndez stadium lights the cauldron and the games are declared open
ready, the 5 454 athletes who will fight for the 3 220 medals – of which 1 010 are of gold, the same number of. silver and 1,200 bronzes – are determined to start the fight.
And for this purpose will go the 589 Colombian athletes, who have a great responsibility to leave the name of the country, because they act as locals. It will be 325 women and 264 men who will try to hoist the national flag as many times as possible, in order to reach the goal that the delegation has drawn: to approach Mexico and Cuba, the powers.
"The waiting is very good for us.Fight Cuba and Mexico will be very interesting and the idea is to get closer.The goal is not to defend the third place previous Games, but to be close to second and first place, "said El Tiempo Baltazar Medina, president of the Colombian Olympic Committee (COC).
And this is not far. Although closing the gap is not easy, you must think that the location of something should serve. In Veracruz (Mexico), 4 years ago, Colombia made 70 gold, 45 from Mexico, which was second, and 53 from Cuba, which won the title. "We know that the two rivals are strong, but you can. Cuba comes with everything, but it's not as hard as it was before. Mexico has losses, like us, but the Idea is to reduce the distance, "said Medina.
In the games of 2014, the pesas gave the Colombian delegation 16 gold medals, the cycling track collaborated with seven and the swimming races, six, sports that have their big accounts to Barranquilla
"We have come with losses lately, but the weight team has been strengthened well.We will have Leidy Solís, with Francisco Mosquera almost with the whole group and we hope to give the better, "said Oswaldo Pinilla, the Colombian coach
The weights are part of the sports called to" leave the gold "in Colombia, as well as cycling, swimming and shooting at the same time. bow, solid disciplines that always bring a lot of metal to the table.
Of course, absences of Oscar Figueroa, gold in the 62 kilos at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro will be noticeable; Mariana Pajón, who recovers from the operation of the anterior cruciate ligament of the left knee, as well as Yuri Alvear, due to a sprained right knee.
"We can not complain about this, we have to go towards the goal, even if we can reach the goal, because we have a strong team," Medina said.
Each of the selected ones had a blank. The gold medalists who are part of the supported athletes group had all the guarantees for their preparation for these Games.
"We are going for the triumph, for that we come to Barranquilla and for that we prepared ourselves well." At least during the march, we had the support, "said Eider Arévalo, world champion of 20 km
Arévalo is part of this select group of elite athletes, with whom the country has won gold medals.It is next to Caterine Ibargüen, who will be in the triple jump. , his specialty, and the long jump, are hopeful titles.In cycling there is Martha Bayona, who in this Olympic cycle has disputed seven out of seven gold medals, four in the Bolivarian Games and the rest in the South American Games. There, on the track of the Velodrome Alcides Nieto will also be Fabián Puerta, the world champion keirin, who will also fight for victory in speed and kilometer.
Jackeline Rentería, although in The South Americans have already been eliminated , have this scenario to recover and win gold again in the fight, while in boxing, a sport that has been a guarantee of titles in recent years for the country, we rely on Yuberjen Martínez, Íngrit Valencia and Céiber Ávila as possible winners.
Yes, the wait is over, and all that remains is to publicize the reality of Colombian sport at the competitions, so that the national athletes, once in Barranquilla, turn to them and do not leave them alone
First tests
The competitions of the Games of Central America and the Caribbean start on Thursday with the trampoline tests of a female and male counter in the discipline of diving, l & # 39; 39; full individual riding event, the confrontation of women's and men's teams in table tennis and the female radial laser and the table tests of men's sailing, but no one is awarded medals this Thursday .
LISANDRO RENGIFO
Special Envoy EL TIEMPO
@LisandroAbel
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