In September 2018, Matanzas judoka Iván Felipe Silva (90 kilogram division) won his first medal in a senior world championship, a silver in the version held in Baku, Azerbaijan. Four years later, in October 2022, Andy Granda (+100 kilograms), also from Yumur, placed himself at the top of the universal competition in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, with his crown. In those two performances, included in the best of Antillean men’s judo in its history, were the guidelines and teachings of Julio Alderete, head of the technical team for more than seven years.
The man from Santiago, explicit and slow in his speech, spoke with Rebel Youth about the international journey of his disciples in 2024, the last Varadero Pan American Open and the two most important competitions in the coming months: the World Championship in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (from May 19 to 23), and the Olympic Games in Paris, France (July 26 to August 11).
— Between January and March they held a training camp in Hungary, as has become customary, and several figures participated in strong competitions in France, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Austria, Georgia and Turkey.
—Before starting this year, our athletes barely had scores, since for several months in 2023 the competitive objectives were focused on the Central American and Caribbean Games, in San Salvador, and then on the Pan American Games in Chile. This affected us a little bit in the scoring aspect. At the beginning of the year we left for Europe and one of the purposes of the preparation there was to intervene in all those battles that you mentioned to obtain the greatest number of units for the Olympic ranking. The design of the training plan also focused on the Pan American Championships—recently concluded in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
«With all these events the always necessary international training of our judokas was guaranteed with a view to the Olympic Games. In the cases of Andy and Silva, the best positioned in their respective rankings, they were medalists in some of these competitions in Europe, and the rest of the representatives continued their work in pursuit of improving places in the rankings.
«We also have as a fundamental objective to comply with the technical-tactical plan of each athlete, that is, to put into practice what
worked on preparation to see whether or not they are in optimal sporting shape. Granda and Iván, according to the stage, fulfilled the evaluated elements, although we always aspire for them to get on the awards podium.
—How do you evaluate the most recent edition of the Varadero Pan American Open?
—It is a very important event for the technical group, since it allows us to evaluate the members of the national team, those who are in the Technical Center and those who are in their provinces. It is a very good opportunity for the judokas who make up the reserve; they, in short, are part of the future of this sport in Cuba in the next Olympic cycles. We observed several young people who performed very well in this Open which, I repeat, is very valuable for the youth and cadet categories, as it allows the boys to gain international competitive experience.
—The Abu Dhabi and Paris 2024 World Cups are getting closer and closer. What competitions will your disciples have before?
—They will be in two grand slams—this weekend Jonathan Charón and Orlando Polanco are competing in Kazakhstan. Later they will participate in the Abu Dhabi world event, an ideal setting for them to compete against the best in the world in their divisions. But the number one objective is for Cuban men’s judo to return to the Olympic podium.
2024-05-12 02:54:51
#Alderete #seeks #Olympic #podium #Juventud #Rebelde
