Otto Oñate Claims Three Pan-American Silver Medals in Weightlifting in Panama

April 28, 2026

Cuban weightlifter Otto Félix Oñate, from Guantánamo, delivered one of the finest performances of his career by winning three silver medals in the 60-kilogram category at the 2026 Pan-American Senior Weightlifting Championship, held in Panama City from April 27 to 30.

Oñate competed in Group A on the championship's opening day and placed second in snatch, clean & jerk, and total in the 60 kg division — three silvers that confirm his standing as Cuba's top weightlifter in the category and reflect an extraordinary comeback story. Cuba's official newspaper Granma summed up the result simply: "Otto Oñate is continental silver."

The achievement carries even greater weight given the remarkable journey that brought Oñate back to the international stage. The Guantánamo native spent three years away from competition to care for his seriously ill mother. When she recovered, he returned to training in August 2025 and, with just four months of preparation, swept three gold medals at the Central American regional qualifier in December, earning Cuba's berth in the men's 60 kg event at the XXV Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo 2026, where he is projected as the leading gold medal contender.

Oñate himself spoke movingly about the period away from sport in an interview with Granma published days before the championship: "When you're young, you want to take on the world and get impatient. Everything has its moment and you have to know how to wait for it." On his return: "I owe my sports career to my mother — she is the one who has supported me the most."

Cuba fielded a small but ambitious delegation in Panama. Joining Oñate was world silver medalist Marifélix Sarría, who will compete on April 30 in the over-86 kg category. The Pan-American championship, which brings together more than 24 countries, also serves as a qualifier for the World Championship and as a benchmark for marks required at the Central American Games.

With three Pan-American silvers now to his name, Otto Oñate continues to write one of Cuban sport's most compelling comeback stories — one that began with two bronzes at the 2018 Barranquilla Games, paused for three selfless years, and has now resumed at full throttle, with 22-year-old Oñate firmly in the conversation for the highest podiums in continental weightlifting.