SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic — The Dominican Republic delivered one of its strongest performances of the XXV Central American and Caribbean Games on Friday, collecting 27 medals, including 15 gold, to temporarily climb into fourth place in the overall standings ahead of the final day of competition.
Powered by a remarkable seven gold medals in boxing and three more in athletics, the Dominican delegation moved ahead of Puerto Rico and strengthened what had already become its best performance since making its debut in the regional Games 80 years ago.
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Dominican athletes also captured seven silver and six bronze medals during the day, bringing the country’s overall total to 145. The performance surpassed the previous national record of 133 medals established at the 2010 Games in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, an edition in which Cuba did not participate.
The Queens of the Caribbean added another memorable chapter to Dominican sports history by defeating Colombia 3-0 and retaining the women’s volleyball championship. The victory extended the Dominican Republic’s extraordinary streak to seven consecutive Central American and Caribbean Games titles.
Weightlifting, karate, sailing and eSports also contributed gold medals. Saúl Mena delivered a historic victory in Street Fighter 6 as eSports made its debut in the regional competition.
Dominican Boxing Dominates the Ring
Boxing provided the biggest surge of the day at the Taekwondo Pavilion of the Olympic Center, where Dominican fighters captured seven gold medals.
Estefani Almánzar opened the celebration in the 54-kilogram division with a 3-2 victory over Venezuela’s Diana Maestre. Junior Alcántara followed by defeating Cuba’s Alejandro Claro 4-0 in the 55-kilogram final.
Disney Medina defeated Venezuela’s Wilson Solorzano in the 60-kilogram division, while Miguel Ángel Encarnación overcame Mexico’s Hugo Barón at 65 kilograms.
Noel Pacheco defeated Venezuela’s Diego Pereyra 3-1 in the 80-kilogram division, and Ricardo Cuello prevailed over Cuba’s Yusnier Sorsano in the 70-kilogram final.
Cristian Pinales provided one of the biggest victories of the night when he defeated two-time Cuban Olympic champion Julio La Cruz 4-1 in the 90-kilogram final, adding another gold medal to the Dominican boxing haul.
Dominican Athletes Shine on the Track
The Dominican Republic also enjoyed an exceptional night in athletics.
Ferdy Agramonte captured gold in the men’s 800 meters with a time of 1:46.07, narrowly defeating Venezuela’s José Maíta, who finished in 1:46.10. Mexico’s Jesús López took bronze in 1:46.86.
Marysabel Senyú successfully defended her Central American and Caribbean Games high jump championship after clearing 1.93 meters. The victory improved on the 1.86-meter performance that earned her gold at San Salvador 2023. Cuba’s Dacsy Brison took silver at 1.91 meters, while Bermuda’s Sakari Famous earned bronze at 1.89.
Braison Guillermo added a bronze medal in the triple jump with a mark of 16.28 meters. Cuba’s Lázaro Martínez won gold with 16.76 meters, followed by compatriot Andy Hechavarría with 16.69.
The Dominican men’s 4×400-meter relay team earned silver in a race that also marked the return of Olympic medalist Luguelin Santos to competition. Santos joined Gabriel Moronta, Lidio Feliz and Yeral Núñez to finish in 3:00.94, narrowly behind Puerto Rico’s winning time of 3:00.75. Venezuela finished third in 3:01.64.
The Dominican women then delivered a golden finish to the evening.
Bianka Acosta, Anabel Medina, Milagros Durán and Estrella De Aza captured the women’s 4×400-meter relay championship with a time of 3:28.48, adding another gold medal to the country’s historic day.
Polanco Takes Karate Gold
Penélope Polanco added another championship for the Dominican Republic by winning the women’s 61-kilogram karate competition.
The 24-year-old opened with a 9-3 victory over Puerto Rico’s Yaleika Mojica before defeating El Salvador’s Stephanie Juárez 8-4. Polanco then prevailed in a dramatic final against Venezuela’s Claudymar Garcés, winning 8-7 to claim the gold medal.
Carlos Herrera earned silver for the Dominican Republic in the men’s 75-kilogram division after losing 6-4 to Guatemala’s Allan Maldonado in the championship match.
Herrera had defeated Cuba’s Ernesto Cobas 9-6 in his opening contest, Venezuela’s Jhosed Ortuño 11-4 in the following round and Costa Rica’s Gabriel Vargas in the semifinal.
Weightlifting Adds to Historic Medal Haul
Dominican weightlifters also contributed to the country’s impressive medal count.
Fransheska Matías captured silver medals in both the snatch and clean and jerk in the 69-kilogram category, finishing behind Colombia’s Julieh Rodríguez in both disciplines.
Daiana Serrano added two bronze medals in the 77-kilogram category.
Yudelina Mejía completed the weightlifting competition with gold and silver in the 86-kilogram division, adding two more medals to a Dominican delegation enjoying its most productive Central American and Caribbean Games in history.
The Dominican Republic entered the final day with additional medal opportunities, including the men’s softball championship against Venezuela and events in athletics and weightlifting.
With the battle for fourth place still unresolved, the host nation headed into the final competitions having already established a new benchmark for Dominican participation in the oldest regional multisport competition in the Americas.
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