Photo: Roberto Morejón, special envoy
Yarisleidis Cirilo and Katherin Nuevo won for Cuba this Saturday the title in the C2-200 meters during the penultimate date of the Canoe Speed World Championship, in Halifax, which hosts Canada.
At Banook Lake, Cirilo and Nuevo crossed the finish line in 45.09 seconds, leaving behind the Chinese Shuai Changwen and Lin Wenjun (45.24) and the Hungarians Bianka Nagy and Giada Bragato (47.59).
The boats from Germany, Canada, Moldova, the United States, Poland and Chile placed fourth to ninth.
That result vindicated the Caribbean, who were in the last seat for nine canoes in the C2-500 meters.
The Chinese Mengya Sun and Shixiao Xu (2:01.26 minutes), the Ukrainians Anastasiia Chetverikova and Liudmyla Luzan (2:03.32) and the Magyares Nagy and Bragato (2:04.70) climbed the podium in that test.
The Cubans were given favorites to fight for medals, but they made that journey in 2:09.71 minutes.
The recovery of Cirilo and Nuevo says a lot about the drive and decision of the students of Nelson Perales.
This Saturday the Olympic champion of Tokyo 2020, Serguei Torres and his new partner in the two-seater, Tabiani Diéguez were fifth in the final B of the C2-500 meters.
They were outscored by Moldovan brothers Oleg and Serghei Tarnovschi (1:53.81), Brazilians Erlon Silva and Filipe Vieira (1:54.32), Canadians Alix Plomteux and Tyler Laidlaw (1:54.76), and Czechs Antonin Hrabal and Jiri Zalubil. (1:56.82).
This Sunday, at the close of the contest, Cirilo will return to the waters in the C1-200 meters and in the C1-5000, José Ramón Pelier in the C1-1000 and Serguey will row solo in the 5000 meters, all in A finals.
(With information from Jit)