Havana/Cuban Andrea Becali stopped the clock in 54.85 seconds in the pool at the Sleeman Center sports complex in Brisbane, Australia. The feat was the national record in the 100 meter freestyle in the Short Course Championship, surpassing by two hundredths (54.87) the mark of Elisbeth Gámez from Baracoa, set on December 14, 2022.
“Becali becomes the second Cuban in history to go under 55 seconds in this test,” highlighted the specialized medium Deporcuba.
The company in charge of the exclusive rights to market products and services related to sports on the Island, Cubadeportes, highlighted Becali’s power, technique and determination to “seize a record that symbolizes the generational change and the push of a new generation of Cuban swimmers.” The athlete’s passion “inspires future generations and reaffirms that sport in the archipelago continues to grow with passion and talent,” he added.
In addition, the swimmer dropped 98 hundredths of a second to her previous personal best (55.83), which she registered on December 11, 2024 at the World Short Course Championships held in Budapest, Hungary.
The athlete’s passion “inspires future generations,” highlighted the Cubadeportes company.
Becali thus consolidates herself as one of the medal contenders at the next Central American and Caribbean Games Santo Domingo 2026. Last April she not only broke the national record in the 50 meter freestyle by clocking 25.87 seconds at the Swimming Open that took place in Australia.
At 21 years old, on that day she not only lowered her personal record twice: first by stopping the clock at 26.28 seconds in the preliminary phase and then surpassing the barrier in Final B. With which she became the first swimmer on the Island to lower 26 seconds.
“His time on the Gold Coast is not only a national record, but a motivational milestone for Cuban swimming, which celebrates this light of speed and international projection,” published the official media. Cubadebate.
The sports analyst Miguel Ángel Castell He warned last June that he would only take four competitors to the Central Americans. “It is the smallest number of a swimming team in the last 30 years and probably in history,” he said in the Facebook space Followers of Cuban Swimming. Of the group, Yadier Estrada, Laurent Estrada and Vladimir Hernández “will arrive without international competitions, without official records and under extreme training conditions.”
Given this panorama, Castell considers that “the best options for medals are Andrea Becali (50, 100 and 200 freestyle). An outstanding participation is also expected from Laurent Estrada, a candidate to be in several finals.”
