"Mijaín," the documentary on five-time Olympic champion Mijaín López, wins an Honorable Mention at Milan's sports film festival

November 4, 2026

The Cuban feature documentary "Mijaín", about Greco-Roman wrestler Mijaín López, the only wrestler to win the same Olympic event five Games in a row, has received an Honorable Mention at the 44th International Sports Film Festival in Milan, Italy. Icaic president Alexis Triana announced the award, as reported by Cubadebate and Juventud Rebelde.

The festival, branded Sport Movies & TV 2026, ran from October 30 to November 2 and is the final stage of the World FICTS Challenge circuit. Organizers chose about 70 productions out of 1,965 submissions from around the world, according to Prensa Latina. The Cuban film was screened on October 31 at the city's Sala Gregorianum.

Directed by Rolando Almirante, Ángel Alderete and Héctor Villar, the 80-minute film is a co-production of Cuba's film institute, Icaic, and the independent company D'Alma Films. Through training footage, interviews with family and teammates, and a return to his hometown of Herradura in Pinar del Río, it follows López on the road to his fifth Olympic gold at Paris 2024.

Since its 2025 premiere, the documentary has screened at Havana's International Festival of New Latin American Cinema, at a film festival in St. Petersburg, Russia, and in Paris and Rome.