feeling "at home" in Mexico and ready to show that they have "lineage" to shine in any field, the Cuban fighters expressed this Wednesday pride and desire to return to professional boxing after 60 years of absence.
"I sit here at home and I hope that on the 20th (of May) there will be a great show here and I also feel very proud and eager to debut like my colleagues professionally."said the three-time world champion, Lázaro Álvarez, in a conference from the Mexican city of Aguascalientes (central north).
Álvarez, 31, will be one of the six protagonists of the return of Cuban boxers on Friday to the professional circuit of the discipline, which had remained in the amateur rank since Fidel Castro’s revolution abolished professional sport in 1962.
The squad is completed by two-time Olympic champions Julio César La Cruz, Roniel Iglesias and Arlen López, as well as world champion Yoenlis Hernández and super featherweight fighter Osvel Caballero, Pan American champion in Lima-2019, who replaced Olympic champion Andy Cruz at the last minute.
"Let the whole world know and let all the boxers know that I am eager and that I have the desire to be great"added Álvarez, who will also debut the nickname of "Prince" in his first professional incursion, as revealed by the businessman organizing the event, Gerardo Saldívar.
The Cross, the captain of the so-called "tamers" of Cuba, also promised to provide "a good show" at the gala on Friday.
"Lineage and quality"
"That the world boxing fans understand that Cubans have quality and have the lineage to box in all kinds of spheres and on all kinds of terrain."said the 32-year-old heavyweight.
Saldívar stressed that four Olympic medalists will make their professional debut on Friday, an event that "never happened in history"he claimed.
Meanwhile, the president of the Cuban Boxing Federation, Alberto Puig, clarified that Andy Cruz’s withdrawal from the delegation was due to neglecting his training in recent days, so it was decided that it was preferable that he not come.
"Soon we will see Andy Cruz on another stage fighting with the Tamers of Cuba"he added.
Cuba’s return to professionalism has been slowly developing since 2013, as a way to seek new forms of financing.
After five decades of amateur practice, the Cuban squad managed to adapt to semi-professional boxing in the World Series (WSB), in which it debuted in 2014 with the franchise "The Tamers". She won three of the five editions in which she competed, including the last one, held in 2018.