Guantanamo.- Cuban beach volleyball will have its first opportunity to qualify for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games when Puerto Rico hosts the NORCECA Continental Championship from November 4 to 9.
Only the men’s and women’s champions at the tournament will qualify directly. As a result, Damián Gómez and Eblis Veranes, along with Maykelin Cardona and Kailin Garrido, will need to deliver outstanding performances on the sands of Vega Baja, where 16 men’s and 16 women’s teams will compete.
Gómez and Veranes won gold, while Cardona and Garrido earned silver, at the recent Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo. Those results place both Cuban pairs among the favorites, although they will face stronger competition in Puerto Rico.
If they fail to qualify, their path to Los Angeles will become more difficult. The Cuban teams would then need to compete on the international circuit to accumulate ranking points or seek one of the final qualifying spots available through the Olympic Q-Series in 2028, according to the “Cuba on the Road to Los Angeles 2028” WhatsApp group.
To keep their chances alive, the Cuban pairs will need to participate consistently in tournaments that enable them to remain among the region’s top-ranked teams.
A total of 24 men’s and 24 women’s pairs—with no more than two pairs per country in each gender—will compete at the Olympic beach volleyball tournament.
The places will be allocated as follows: one to the host country, five through the continental championships, one through the World Championship, 14 via the Olympic ranking, and three through the Olympic Q-Series.
