International
Cuban women, finally, in boxing ring
| By AFP | Carlos Batista |
With a strong right jab to the face of her opponent, Elianni Garcia Polledo on Saturday won the first official women’s boxing match in sports-crazed Cuba.
“It is a historic result for Cuban boxing,” said one of the judges over the loudspeaker when announcing the “unanimous” decision for Garcia, from Havana province, over Reynabell Grant, from Guantanamo. Both are 27.
Dressed in red and shorter, Garcia tirelessly landed powerful blows with both hands that hit her opponent’s face, shoulders and abdomen several times.
That is, until the decisive blow, in the third round, left Grant down for the count and ultimately decided the fight.
It was the beginning of the first official women’s boxing program, something that many women and authorities of this sport expected in Cuba, an island that boasts 80 world boxing titles and 41 Olympic gold medals in boxing, including the legendary Teofilo Stevenson.
Finally, Cuban sports authorities gave a green light for women on December 5.
“This is a moment that we have been preparing for, for several years,” Alberto Puig de la Barca, president of the Cuban Boxing Federation, told AFP.
In the end, there will be 12 females — two for each division, which will be the preselection of the team for the Central American games in San Salvador, in August 2023 and other international events.
“She (García) just kept working on the offensive, looking to shorten the distance,” Raul Fernandez, 55, one of her trainers, told AFP at the end of the fight.
Garcia, who says she came to boxing from athletics, now looks optimistically at her future in boxing.
‘Bittersweet’
“I have a bittersweet feeling, because I cannot represent Cuba,” Namibia Flores told AFP. At 46, she is six years older than the age maximum in this sport.
But she can be there outside the ring: “Right now, I am the only trainer and I was one of the first girls who is training since 2006,” she says.
At 70 years old and already retired, Nardo Mestre could not miss this moment.
He was the trainer of Flores and many other girls for nearly 30 years, when, he remembers, Alcides Sagarra, the father of the Cuban Boxing School, arrived one afternoon suggesting the need to train women.
So “it was never approved. Now it was authorized and I am already retired, but proud because five of the girls that I trained are here today,” he told AFP.
Cuba has had female representation in all sports, including weightlifting and wrestling, since 2006, but the last bastion of “sports machismo” long was insurmountable: letting women box.
Women’s boxing is now practiced in 187 of the 202 member countries of the International Boxing Association (IBA).
Women made their debut at the London 2012 Olympic Games, with three divisions.
It has yet to be determined if Cuba could be represented by its women in the next Boxing World Cup in Tashkent, capital of Uzbekistan, next May.
International
Trump moves to reclassify marijuana as less dangerous substance
Former U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous addictive substance, a move aimed at encouraging medical research without immediately opening the door to federal-level decriminalization.
Trump said that “people were begging” him to make the decision, particularly individuals suffering from chronic pain. He stressed, however, that the measure “is not at all a decriminalization” of marijuana for non-medical use.
“I’ve always told my children: don’t use drugs, don’t drink, don’t smoke,” Trump added. He is a well-known teetotaler.
A senior government official described the decision as “common sense” during a briefing with reporters, noting that marijuana and CBD-based products — a compound derived from cannabis known for its relaxing properties — are already widely used in the United States by patients dealing with chronic pain.
Most U.S. states currently allow the use of cannabis for medical purposes, and more than 20 states, along with the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., have also legalized recreational use.
International
Shakira’s El Salvador concerts sell out in hours, fans demand more dates
The sell-out of all three announced Shakira concerts in El Salvador in less than 24 hours has sparked a collective call for additional dates, highlighting an overwhelming demand that transcends borders and positions the country as a cultural hub in Central America.
Ticket sales for Shakira’s Central American residency confirmed the artist’s massive impact across the region. The three shows scheduled for February 12, 14, and 15 in El Salvador sold out in under 24 hours, triggering an immediate public response from fans who were unable to secure tickets and are now urging promoters to open new dates, according to an official statement from promoters Two Shows and Fenix Entertainment.
Even before ticket sales officially opened, thousands of people joined virtual queues that exceeded the usual capacity of the country’s ticketing platforms. Despite logging in early and waiting for hours, many users were unable to complete their purchases and were ultimately left without tickets, Two Shows reported.
The unprecedented demand was widely documented through screenshots, testimonials, and social media posts, showing slow-moving waiting lists, ticketing websites overwhelmed by traffic, and purchase processes that failed to go through despite users following all required steps within the designated timeframes.
According to the organizers, demand to see Shakira perform in El Salvador remains strong even after the sell-out. Meanwhile, hotels have reported booking inquiries beyond the announced concert dates, pointing to a larger-than-expected tourism influx tied to the event.
International
Rubio rules out 2028 presidential bid if Vance runs
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he would not seek the presidency in 2028 if current Vice President JD Vancedecides to run as the Republican nominee to succeed President Donald Trump.
“If JD Vance runs for president, he will be our candidate, and I will be one of the first people to support him,” Rubio said in an interview with Vanity Fair, in which he appeared alongside other senior members of the presidential cabinet.
Rubio, 54, and Vance, 41, are widely viewed as two of the leading Republican figures who could headline the party’s ticket in the 2028 election. Under the U.S. Constitution, Trump is barred from seeking another term after completing two presidential mandates.
In a lighthearted moment during the interview, Vance jokingly offered photographers $1,000 if they managed to make him look better than Rubio in the photos. Both leaders have received public backing from Trump, who last October floated the idea of a joint ticket featuring Rubio and Vance, without clarifying who would lead it.
“I think that if they ever teamed up, they would be unstoppable. I don’t think anyone would run against us,” Trump said at the time.
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, who also took part in the interview, confirmed that Trump does not intend to violate the 22nd Amendment, which prohibits a third presidential term, though she acknowledged that the president is “having fun” with speculation about a possible return to office.
Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, served as a Republican senator from 2010 to 2025. He sought the party’s presidential nomination in 2016 but was defeated by Trump after a bruising primary contest. His name was floated as a potential vice presidential pick in 2024, but Vance ultimately secured the spot. After taking office, Trump appointed Rubio as secretary of state, making him the first Latino to hold the position.
Trump moves to reclassify marijuana as less dangerous substance
Shakira’s El Salvador concerts sell out in hours, fans demand more dates
Rubio rules out 2028 presidential bid if Vance runs
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