# Baurelys Torres leads Cuban karate team to secure 13 spots for the 2026 Central American Games

**Date:** 04/19/2026

Cuban karateka Baurelys Torres, defending champion at the 2023 Central American and Caribbean Games, is among the athletes who secured their spots for the 2026 edition of the regional tournament, to be held in the Dominican Republic between July 24 and August 8.

At the qualifying tournament hosted in Santo Domingo, with the participation of around twenty nations, Cuba locked in 13 berths across the kata and kumite disciplines. Torres, now competing in the 59 kg category, will look to defend the title she claimed at the previous edition, in what is shaping up to be a highly competitive regional field.

Also qualifying in women's kumite were Leanerkys Chacón (50 kg), Bárbara Lynn (61 kg), Anilaidis de la Caridad (68 kg), and Juana María Parra (+68 kg). On the men's side, Brayan Díaz (60 kg), Lousbel Velázquez (67 kg), Ernesto Cobas (75 kg), Alain Díaz (84 kg), and Edgar Márquez (+84 kg) secured their places. Víctor Sánchez will represent Cuba in the individual kata event.

The number of qualifying spots earned is excellent news for Cuban karate, which heads into the Santo Domingo Games as the team to beat in several divisions.