Havana, March 17 (RHC) — The First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel, received American actor, director, and producer Kevin Costner, who is visiting the Caribbean nation to explore underwater archaeology, the Presidency of the Republic announced this Monday.

“It is a pleasure to meet you and your visit to Cuba is a source of enormous satisfaction.  You are greatly admired by the Cuban people, who have closely followed your stay in our country these past few days,” the President stated during the meeting at the Palace of the Revolution.

Costner expressed that he feels very good in Cuba and that he had dreamed of this project for some time.

The American actor referred to his special friendship with Cuban Alejandro Mirabal, an underwater archaeologist and prominent researcher.   “I have studied the Caribbean a lot,” he noted.   He commented that he was impressed by the Museo del Castillo de la Real Fuerza, both for its artifacts and its architecture.

During the pleasant conversation, the head of state invited him to visit Santiago de Cuba, whose bay holds a significant underwater heritage.

Kevin Costner previously visited Cuba in April 2001, where he met with the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, with whom he had a lively conversation, according to the press at the time.   On that occasion, he traveled to Havana to present the film “13 Days,” about the October 1962 Crisis, in which he played the leading role of Kenneth O’Donnell, John F. Kennedy’s collaborator at the time.

In a statement to the Spanish newspaper El País in 2015, the artist expressed his joy at the rapprochement between Cuba and the United States.

Camagüey, Cuba, March 23 (PL) The Pinar del Río volleyball players were proclaimed Cuban national champions here today, after sweeping Havana in the final with scores of 25-16, 25-22 and 25-14.

The Pinar del Río team, which only lost one set in the six matches played during the tournament, demonstrated overwhelming superiority in the final.

The inaccuracies of the Havana team paved the way for the representatives of Cuba’s westernmost province to take the title. Martha García and Lisbeysis Hernández were the standouts in Pinar del Río’s victory, the latter in particular, who deserved to be named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

Third place went to Cienfuegos, which repeated its performance from last year, this time after defeating Granma for the bronze medal, with scores of 25-13, 25-15 and 25-19, a performance that consolidates this province as one of the most consistent in the country in the women’s sport of high mesh.

The tournament highlighted the weaknesses and technical deficiencies in this sport in the country, which serves as a benchmark for evaluating and developing work strategies to raise the level of reserves for national teams in preparation for international matches, regardless of the players contracted abroad by the Cuban Federation.

The disappointment of the tournament was the host team, Camagüey, which, after being the defending 2024 champion, finished in last place, behind Santiago de Cuba, in both cases with poor and inconsistent performances.

With the conclusion of the tournament, Cuban women’s volleyball closes an important chapter in its calendar, as the national teams in their various categories begin preparing for upcoming international challenges.

jcm/fam

Nanjing, China, March 22 (Prensa Latina) Cuban Leyanis Pérez won the triple jump title today at the 2025 Nanjing World Indoor Athletics Championships, with the best mark of the year.

The 23-year-old Caribbean native clocked 14.93 meters to claim victory and take the gold medal, her country’s first in the world competition.

In this way, Leyanis Pérez enriched her list of achievements, which also includes a Diamond League title, a silver and bronze medal at outdoor world championships, and several continental titles.

Her compatriot Liadagmis Povea (14.57) and the Spanish Ana Peleteiro-Compaoré (14.29) took the silver and bronze medals, respectively.

Also on the second day of the World Indoor Championships, Sweden’s Armand Duplantis (6.15 meters) won the pole vault; Ethiopia’s Freweyni Hailu (8:37.21 minutes) and Norway’s Jakob Ingebriftsen (7:46.09) dominated the 3,000 meters; and Britain’s Amber Anning (50.60) took gold in the 400 meters.

Likewise, in the men’s sector of the latter modality, the American Christopher Bailey (45.08) climbed to the top of the podium, ahead of his compatriots Brian Faust (45.47) and Jacory Patterson (45.54).

arc/yas