Baseball5 world champions: Cuba celebrate their heroes on return home

Back-to-back WBSC Baseball5 World Cup winners Cuba were given a rapturous welcome on their return home after defending their world title in Hong Kong, China last week.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel congratulated the national team for securing their second consecutive World Championship title at the WBSC Baseball5 World Cup 2024 on Saturday. In a message shared on X (formerly Twitter), Diaz-Canel celebrated the team’s undefeated run, acknowledging their victory over Japan and expressing national pride in the sport born on Cuba’s streets.

“Congratulations, champions! Thank you for passionately defending a sport born in the heart of the Homeland: our neighbourhoods,” he wrote, following Cuba’s decisive 2-0 (16-1, 7-5) win in the final.

Osvaldo Vento Montiller and Raúl Fornés Valenciano, president and first vice president of the National Sports Institute (Inder) respectively, received the Cuban team at the airport in Havana.

"You have given us some lessons, now that we are building the strategy for the next Olympic cycle. For example, I'm impressed with the cohesion and unity that is being achieved by the staff, reflected in the players as a very important factor for success," Vento said.

"You leave for the present and future generations of athletes a positive outcome obtained from the will to compete with pride and representing Cuba with dignity," Vento added.

The victory marked Cuba’s ninth consecutive win in the tournament, having dropped just one set to Japan in the Super Round as well as the world No 2's 18th unbeaten World Cup game since the start of the inaugural edition in 2022.

This year’s championship also showcased the exceptionalindividual talent within the Cuban team. Haila Gonzalez was named the women’sMVP, while Briandy Molina earned his second consecutive men’s MVP title.

Cuba’s triumph in Hong Kong reflected the deeply rootedtradition in the street game “Cuatro Esquinas” (Four Corners), a game that haslong been a part of Cuban life, embodying the nation’s culture and identity.
Children across the island have turned every street corner into an improvisedbaseball diamond, playing with the same passion and energy that Cuba’schampions displayed on the world stage.

By 2018, Cuba had already established national Baseball5 championships, and the sport quickly became part of the international sports calendar. Since then, Cuba has dominated every competition, consistently demonstrating their strength across both senior and youth categories.

In addition to claiming the two WBSC Baseball5 World Cups without defeat, Cuba won the first WBSC Youth Baseball5 World Cup last year, also going remaining undefeated.