Hemingway returns to the seas of the Cuban capital

The fishing tournament that today bears his name was held for the first time on May 26, 1950, with the participation of about 20 boats, most of them from the United States, at the old Havana International Nautical Club.

Daybelis Pérez Sandrino, commercial director of Marlin and in charge of the event, recalled that the number of North American fishermen is lower than in past decades, they continue to participate.

Aboard his yacht Pilar, Hemingway participated from the beginning as a member of the International Yacht Club of Havana and was the first to win three consecutive editions in the first decade of the competition.

The tournament, which adopted the name of the writer at the suggestion of the fishermen, changed its headquarters in 1960 to the Marina Barlovento marina, now Marina Hemingway.

Fulfilling the wishes of the award-winning writer, the overall winner has the opportunity to be photographed with the original cup, donated by Hemingway and kept in the Havana marina. If a team wins three consecutive editions, they can take it to their country for one year, until the next edition.

The Hemingway tournament, whose 72nd edition will take place from this Monday, May 27 to June 1, follows the regulations of the International Sport Fishing Federation IGFA, it is developed in the catch, mark and release modality, friendly to the environment. “Beaked species are captured and then returned to their natural habitat. The mark is made with stickers that do not harm the fish and the use of the circle hook is mandatory, also to protect them.”

In 2016, during Barack Obama's second term, the largest number of boats competing came from the United States. The competition, starting in 1978, was opened to international calls.

The name remained as a tribute to the author of novels such as A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls and The Old Man and the Sea, Nobel Prize winner in Literature in 1954, who traveled to Cuba for the first time in 1928 and lived in Havana between 1939 and 1960, establishing a close bond with the country and its people, the fishermen in a prominent place.

The tournament is maintained by the will of the Cuban State to show the potential that Cuba's seas have for fans of sport fishing.

Only in 2021 was it not celebrated, due to restrictions due to the covid-19 pandemic.