Joan will be one of the pillars of the Capitalinos in the LSB final. Author: Taken from his Facebook profile

One of the most spectacular rim games I remember from the current Major League Basketball (m) was played by Capitalinos member Joan Gutierrez. It was a basket in the final seconds of the penultimate qualifying game against Mayabeke’s team that put his team ahead and came very close to a victory that, in short, evaporated. However, almost all visitors to the Ramon Fonst Multipurpose Hall in Havana applauded him in different ways.

In a team that suffered some losses from last year to this year, Joan is one of the athletes who made the most progress compared to the previous season. In this edition, he was full-time with a group led by Reinier Muñiz and his growing talent was one of the driving forces for the Capitalinos to find themselves in a championship decider today, seven years after losing to Ciego de Ávila for gold

“We already improved our results in 2022 when we finished third, but we are a young team with the ambition to win, to take home a crown we haven’t achieved in years. In addition, we have a very good reason, and it is in order to achieve this title that we must dedicate it to Professor Rafael Cairo – Assistant Campus Coach – who recently passed away. We suffered a lot from his loss, he was a fundamental figure, an excellent strategist at decisive moments. Our management always supports us in achieving this goal, and I think that in the final we can meet Ciego de Avila, a very experienced team.

“In my case, compared to the previous tournament where I debuted, I had a phenomenal championship, thanks to a good preparation, which included an invitation to the national selection, and there I improved several questions for this LSB. such as physical and shooting equipment. In addition, I have strengthened some of my main resources on the field,” said Gutierrez. Rebellious youth.

A testament to how well the 19-year-old has fared was his inclusion in the Antilles squad for the last ALBA Games, April 21-29, in Venezuela, where Cuba lost in the final against a local.

“I did not expect to be called up and it was a great pleasure to wear the four letters of my country on the uniform and protect its flag. The result could have been better, we needed more team play and training as it was a team that came together in a short amount of time, but I think we got a good performance. I experienced a lot of nerves, imagine, I was at my first competition abroad, ”he concluded.

Source: Juventud Rebelde