The Cuban weightlifter Arley Méndez will compete in the Tokyo Olympics under the flag of Chile of Tokyo

May 19, 2021

Cuban weightlifter Arley Méndez qualified for the Tokyo Olympic Games, but will wear the uniform of Chile's official team, which already has 43 athletes for the Japanese event.

The Chilean Olympic Committee (COCh) reported that Méndez obtained his spot in the 81-kilogram category and fellow Chilean weightlifter Fernanda Valdés did so in the 87-kilogram category.

For Méndez, born in Cuba and naturalized as Chilean in 2017, this will be his first competition in the Olympic Games.

Thanks to these two new qualified athletes in weightlifting, the Chilean Olympic team delegation will compete in 19 sports, the largest number in the country's history at an Olympic Games.

A few days earlier, Arley Méndez added a new achievement to his career after winning the title at the South American Championship in Cali in the 81-kilogram category. The athlete won in the snatch with 155 kilograms and in the clean and jerk with 180 kilograms, completing an Olympic total of 335.

Competing under the Chilean flag, Arley has achieved gold medals at the World Championship in Anaheim, United States (2017), the Pan American Games in Santo Domingo (2018), Guatemala City (2019), and the South American Games in Cochabamba (2018).