Latin American Network Information Center - LANIC

-DATE-
19740501
-YEAR-
1974
-DOCUMENT_TYPE-
SPEECH
-AUTHOR-
F. CASTRO
-HEADLINE-
CASTRO ADDRESSES CUBAN ATHLETES ON BRAZIL GAMES
-PLACE-
CUBA
-SOURCE-
HAVANA DOMESTIC SVC
-REPORT_NBR-
FBIS
-REPORT_DATE-
19740502
-TEXT-
FIDEL CASTRO ADDRESSES CUBAN ATHLETES ON BRAZIL GAMES

Havana Domestic Service in Spanish 1902 GMT 1 May 74 F

[Text] Commander in Chief Fidel Castro, prime minister of the Revolutionary
Government, has pointed out that the fundamental objective of the Cuban
athletes must be the Pan-American Games that will be held next year in Sao
Paulo, Brazil.

The first secretary of our party delivered a speech last night at a
governmental reception held in honor of the large Cuban delegation that
participated in the 12th Central American and Caribbean games that were
held in the Dominican Republic.

"Our people are proud of our athletes, who are children of the revolution,
flagbearers of the revolution," said Fidel. The prime minister explained
the difficult situation suffered by the Cuban athletes prior to the triumph
of the revolution. "Today we have sports in Cuba," he said after pointing
out that prior to 1959 only a few Cubans were able to win metals with great
personal sacrifices.

In his speech to the Cuban athletic delegation, our Commander in Chief
Fidel Castro stated that we are increasingly winning more medals in the
Central American, Pan-American and world Olympic Games. The Cuban athletes
won the first place of the Central American Games this year, the second
place in the Pan-American Games held in Cali, Columbia, in 1971, and the
14th place in the world Olympic Games held in Munich in 1972. Our prime
minister talked about the Cuban sports predominance in Latin America and
explained that this is due to the great development attained by our
fatherland in sports.

"The Cuban successes are not due to the superiority of our athletes, but
due to the fact that the country has a socialist revolution, a superior
regime," pointed our Fidel. The chief of the Cuban Revolution underlined
that our athletes not only win in sports where professionalism affects
other countries, but in areas where sports are not affected by
mercantilism. "Today we win in areas where there is and is no
professionalism," pointed out Fidel, and called sports one of the things
that gives great prestige to the revolution, one of the activities where
the Cuban Revolution's accomplishments are clearly displayed.

The prime minister expressed gratitude for the support given by the
Dominican people in the recently held games, and by other nations where our
athletes compete. After pointing out that one of the things that are
admired the most are our victories in sports, Fidel Castro said that Cuba
will represent Latin America in the Pan-American Games, and its nations
will rejoice over our victories.

In comparing the past of our sports and the current successes, the first
secretary of the PCC said that there has been a radical change, but added
that the superiority is the product of the system in which men live. "We do
not feel that we are superior to the rest of the nations, but our social
system is superior," pointed out Fidel. Fidel referred to the potential of
the Latin American countries and said that someday they will have as good
athletes as we have, when the social conditions change.

"We would like to see those fraternal countries training good athletes, and
we will help them do it," he said. He added that now we have to compete
against the United States, whom we will be facing next year in Brazil. "We
will have to make greater effort in all contests, because we represent 300
million Latin Americans," said Fidel.

In his speech, our commander in chief said that the Latin American support
was due to a greater understanding of our process. He recalled that North
American imperialism believed at the beginning that the Cuban Revolution
was joke. And then he said: "Now they are convinced that this is something
serious and permanent, and that will not last forever is what they have."

Elsewhere in his speech, he asserted that in the struggle against
imperialism our athletes are part of an army, a vanguard. "We will again
compete against the Yankees in the Pan-American Games of Brazil,
imperialism's subgendarme whose people will welcome the Cubans," stressed
Fidel.

He also referred to the development of our sports and announced the
upcoming inauguration of a sports track made of (recortan) and the
construction of a bicycle race course.

In his speech, Fidel expressed optimism in connection with the development
of sports in Cuba. He pointed out that Cuba still has come deficiencies in
the field of sports and mentioned swimming. He said: "We will become good
swimmers. It is just a matter of time and the need for more swimming
pools." He said that seven schools for training physical education
professors are under construction and pointed out that the main objective
of sports is not to win medals, but to have all the people participate in
them.

Fidel pointed out the aid given us by socialist countries' sports
technicians, and concluded by saying: "In that great sports battle of the
Pan-American Games of Brazil, we must raise very high the flag of the Cuban
Revolution."
-END-


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