Gold for Osleni Guerrero in México

July 1, 2019

That victory, his fifth of the tournament, allowed him to earn 1,700 points for the world ranking and increase his confidence with an eye toward the upcoming Lima Pan American Games, to be held from July 26 to August 11 next.

Cuban Osleni Guerrero won today the gold medal in the men's singles badminton competition at the International Badminton Tournament, held until this Sunday in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Guerrero, top seed in men's singles, claimed the title in a contest against Mexican Lino Muñoz, second seed, whom he defeated coming from behind in a hard-fought match with scores of 20-22, 21-18, and 21-15, in 58 minutes of play.

That victory, his fifth of the tournament, allowed him to earn 1,700 points for the world ranking and increase his confidence with an eye toward the upcoming Lima Pan American Games, to be held from July 26 to August 11 next.

On his path to the crown, Cuba's top racquet player defeated Aztec Luis Armando Montoya this Saturday in one of the semifinals, with scores of 21-14 and 21-16, according to the official tournament website.

Runner-up at the Guadalajara 2011 multi-sport event and bronze medalist in Toronto 2015, the island's badminton player made his debut in that competition with a victory against host Sebastián Martínez, whom he defeated 21-9 and 21-10.

Later, in his second time on the court, the continental champion of that sport this year defeated another local player, Sebastián de La Torre, with straight sets of 21-14 and 21-11.

Furthermore, in the quarterfinals his opponent was Uriel Francisco Canjura, from El Salvador, who put up resistance in the first set, but ultimately Guerrero prevailed 21-19 and 21-11.

In the case of his opponent for the title, Muñoz, he had eliminated England's Sahil Sipani in three sets in the other semifinal, in a match that ended in his favor 21-14, 17-21, and 21-16.

Classified as a Future Series tournament, that tournament awarded 1,700 points for the world ranking to the winners in each of the competitions, whether individual or team.

For the Cuban, that event in Guadalajara was a good opportunity to test himself ahead of his participation in Lima, where he will try to reach the top of the podium.