Cuban Hurdler Greisys Roble Shines at Athletic Meet in Finland

Cuban hurdler Greisys Roble matched her personal best at the Motonet GP in Joensuu, Finland, capping off a weekend that also saw top performances from Cuban athletes in Spain and France as part of their summer tour.

Roble clocked 12.71 seconds in the 100-meter hurdles, marking the second time this year she has equaled her lifetime best. She first achieved this time at the 2025 Copa Cuba on June 5 and has now run under 13 seconds 10 times since February.

In the preliminary heat in Finland, she posted 12.82 seconds before pushing harder in the final to finish ahead of home athletes Lotta Harala (12.74) and Nooralotta Neziri (12.82).

"Great memories from Finland. Matching my personal best, achieving goals… I’m super happy," the Mayabeque native wrote on her Facebook page.

At the same meet, long jumper Aniel Molina took second place with a leap of 7.86 meters, behind Uzbekistan’s Anvar Anvarov (8.25). Finland’s Kristian Pulli completed the podium with 7.82 meters.

Meanwhile, at the National Meet in Castres, France, Cuban discus throwers Silinda Morales and Mario Díaz dominated their events. Morales won with a throw of 65.59 meters, outpacing France’s Melina Robert-Michon (63.18). Díaz secured victory with 62.88 meters, reinforcing his position among the qualifiers for the World Championships in Tokyo this September.

Another standout performance came from long jumper Juan Miguel Echevarría at the Autonomous Federations National Championship in Ciudad Real, Spain. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic silver medalist won with a jump of 8.11 meters, moving up to 33rd in the world rankings (with 36 athletes qualifying for Worlds). While reaching 8.27 meters before the qualification period ends would be ideal, Echevarría’s consistency—including two identical 8.11-meter jumps and an 8.05-meter effort—signals a strong return to international competition. Local favorite Eusebio Cáceres placed second with 7.68 meters.

In the pole vault, Aslín Quiala finished second with 4.15 meters after failing three attempts at 4.25. Spain’s Mónica Clemente won with 4.35 meters.

On Tuesday, Cuban triple jumpers Leyanis Pérez and Liadagmis Povea will face Jamaica’s Shanieka Ricketts again at the Grand Prix in Brescia, Italy.