Jorge Fuentes Fleitas

Jorge Fuentes Fleitas. Cuban trainer and sports manager. One of the most successful Cuban baseball managers of all time. Multiple-time national champion with teams from the province of Pinar del Río, he also led Cuba's national team to the conquest of Central American, Pan American, world, and Olympic titles.

A graduate in Physical Culture and Master of Science in the specialty of baseball, he has provided technical advice in several countries. In recent years he has served as an executive of the Cuban Baseball Federation, providing technical advice to Cuba's national baseball teams.

He was born in San Cristóbal, Pinar del Río. He completed his primary education at Gabino Labrador school and secondary education at Guillermo Castillo Peguero High School. He continued his studies at the Comandante Manuel Piti Farjado School of Physical Education in Havana, where he graduated as a Physical Education teacher in 1971.

In 1978 he obtained the title of Graduate in Physical Culture from the Faculty of Physical Culture and Sports Nancy Uranga Romagoza in Pinar del Río and in 2009 the title of Master in the specialty of baseball.

As a university professor, he has taught specialized courses on technical aspects of baseball, professional development for team directors and coaches, as well as lectures at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and courses for COPABE.

Sports Career
National Series
He began as a coach and team director in national championships and special baseball series in Pinar del Río from 1971 to 1997. In 1973 he was appointed Baseball Commissioner in his native province. He made his debut as manager in the National Baseball Series and in the Select Series of 1981-1982, winning the championship in both. Since then he managed ten contests with the Vegueros team, and twelve with the Pinar del Río team, achieving four first-place finishes in:
XXI Series in 1981-1982
XXIV Series in 1984-1985
XXVI Series in 1986-1987
XXVII Series in 1987-1988
XXXVI Series in 1996-1997
He finished second in Series XXV, XXVI, XL, and XLVII. He obtained third place in Series XLI, XLII, and XLIII

Select Series
In these competitions he directed the Pinar del Río team for ten consecutive years from 1982-1992, achieving four first-place finishes in 1982, 1984, 1988, and 1991; a second-place finish in 1990; and three third-place finishes in 1986, 1987, and 1992.

Other National Events
Jorge Fuentes also obtained two second-place finishes in the Revolution Cups of 1996 and 1997. In the Baseball Super-Select tournaments held during 1993, 1994, and 1995, he achieved a third, a second, and a first-place finish respectively with the Occidentales team.

International Events
As director of the Cuba baseball team, he obtained three titles in Central American and Caribbean Games at the XV Games in the Dominican Republic in 1986, at the XVI Games in Mexico in 1990, and at the XVIII Games in Puerto Rico.

In Pan American Games, he obtained a title at the XI Pan American Games Havana 1991 and a second-place finish at the XII Pan American Games Mar del Plata 1995.

He directed the Cuba team at the Olympic Games in Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996, winning the gold medal on both occasions. He also led the team to the conquest of two world championships in Italy 1988 and Nicaragua 1994; in addition to winning three titles in Intercontinental Cups in Havana 1987, Puerto Rico 1989, and Italy 1993; plus a runner-up finish in Spain 1997.

Sports Advisory Work
Outside of Cuba, Jorge Fuentes has had a successful career as an advisor and coach that began in 1973 when he coached a Mexican professional team. From 1998 to 2000 he worked as a technician for the Japanese Baseball Federation, and that last year he directed the Nicaragua team in the Baseball World Cup in the Netherlands. During 2005 he was manager of the Chinadenga team in Nicaragua during the celebration of the II Professional League of that country, and later was an advisor in organizing the 2007 Baseball World Cup in Taipei, China.

As a Cuban federation official, he coordinated the training exchange and base for the Cuba team in South Korea during 2008, and that same year advised the national team of the island which obtained second place in the Beijing Olympics and participated in the II World Baseball Classic in 2009.

He served as head of the technical staff of Cuba's national baseball team that participated in the bilateral baseball series with the United States held from July 5-10, 2012 at Latinoamericano Stadium in Havana and of the national team that participated in the Haarlem Baseball Week in the Netherlands between July 13-22, 2012.

In the last semester of 2012, he was called by the Federation to advise in directing the Cuba team to debuting manager Víctor Mesa, with whom he conducted a preparation tour through Mexico and Asia in order to prepare the team for the III World Baseball Classic in March 2013. On November 22, the Cuban Baseball Federation decided to appoint him its Technical Director[1].

On January 16, he was designated as Technical Director of the team that represented Cuba in the III Baseball Classic, where the Cuban team was eliminated by the Netherlands team in the second round and failed to advance to the semifinal that took place in San Francisco, United States in March 2013.

In November 2013, according to a report by the Cuban Baseball Federation, he was appointed to lead the Piratas de Campeche team of the Mexican Professional League for the 2014 season[2].

References

↑ Jorge Fuentes, technical director of Cuban baseball. Available at Cubadebate. Accessed November 23, 2012
↑ Jorge Fuentes will manage Piratas de Campeche. Available at Periódico Jit. Accessed November 12, 2012
Sources

Alfonso, Jorge: In: Alfonso López, Félix Julio, comp. With the bases loaded: baseball, history and revolution. -- Havana: Edit. Científico-Técnica, 2008. -- p.p.: 14-17
Alfonso, Jorge. The select series underway. This is what they think. Bohemia. Havana. Year 85, No. 11, March 12, 1993. pp. 29-31, il.
Álvarez, Jorge, Salmerón, José L. After a long odyssey that began in November ... the classic came to an end. Semanario Deportivo LPV, Havana. Year 23, No. 1184, February 26, 1985. pp. 4-6, il.
Álvarez, Jorge, Salmerón, José L. Baptism by fire. Semanario Deportivo LPV. Havana, Year 20, No. 1070, December 21, 1982. pp. 4-7, il.
Provincial Computing Center for Sports. Sports Games: memory. -- /Pinar del Río: CPID, 1991/. /s.p./
Hernández, Marcos, Rodes, Lázaro. Vegueros won the title in the XXI National Series ... Havana. Semanario Deportivo LPV. Havana. Year 20, No. 1028, March 2, 1982. pp. 4-9, il.
Sánchez Díaz, Camilo, García Spray Jorge, Méndez Rodríguez, Efraín. Performance of Pinar del Río teams in National and Select series. Pinar del Río. (Digital Media)
(Work prepared by the Provincial Baseball Commission)

Arzola Lima, Ariel. United States-Cuba Series. Acceptable results. Granma. Havana. Year 48, No. 163, July 10, 2012. p. 14.
García, Joel. There were rematches, but grievances remained. Trabajadores. Havana. Year 42, No. 30, July 23, 2012. p. 13
Interview with Jorge Fuentes Fleitas. Provincial Sports Department, Pinar del Río. Advisor to the Provincial Baseball Commission. April 26, 2012, Pinar del Río.