Weightlifters delivered two medals (a silver and a bronze) and the Dominican 4 x 400 m team pulled in a surprising silver medal during the Friday through early Monday morning Tokyo Olympics 2020 events. The Queens of the Caribbean defeated Japan on Monday, 2 August 2021 to keep alive hopes at playing in the second round in women’s volleyball.
Over the weekend, weightlifter Zacarias Bonnat became the first Dominican to win a medal in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Bonnat won the silver medal in the 81 kg category in weightlifting on 31 July 2021. He lifted 163 in snatch, and 204 in clean & jerk for a total of 367.
The Dominican 4 x 400 m mixed relay, won the silver medal. Poland was first and the United States third. It was the first time that the race was run in an Olympic Games. It is also the first time that a Dominican relay medals in the Olympics. And it was the first time Dominican women win a medal (Marileidy Paulino and Anabel Medina). It was also the second silver medal in an Olympic Games for a Dominican athlete, that won by Luguelín Santos, who ran in the semi-finals of the 4 x 400 m mixed race for the DR. The DR qualified with 3:12.74, a national record.
The video of the finals of the 4 x 400 m mixed relay shows the start with Lidio Andrés Feliz, and then how Marileidy Paulino and Anabel Medina, the two Dominican women in the mixed relay, take command as they ran the second and third legs of the relay. The Claro TV video also captures the outstanding photofinish dive of the Dominican closer of the race, Alexander Ogando to beat the USA team. Poland was the winner of the relay. Two-time Olympic Games gold medal winner, Felix Sánchez is the coach of the Dominican track team. The DR runners did 3:10.21, a national record, to win the silver medal.
Marileidy Paulino, who gained the most distance for the Dominican relay team in the 4 x 400 m relay, runs on Monday, 2 August 2021 in the 400 m event in the Olympics as she competes for an individual medal.
Of the nine Olympic medals won by Dominican athletes, four had been won in track and field: Felix Sanchez (2 golds at the 400 meter hurdles in Athens 2004 and London 2012), Luguelin Santos at 400 meters in London 20212 and now this relay team. Luguelin Santos was part of the qualifying relay team and thus wins his second Olympic silver.
Other medals have been won by Pedro Julio Nolasco (Los Angeles 1984) in boxing, Gabriel Mercedes (Beijing 2008) and Luisito Pie in Taekwondo (Rio 2016).
In weightlifting, Crismery Santana Peguero won the bronze medal in the women’s -87kg division early on Monday morning by lifting 256 kg.
In baseball, the Dominican Republic defeated Mexico but lost to South Korea 4-3 over the weekend. The DR will next play Israel in the repechage. The DR had already lost to Japan 3-4.
In women’s volleyball, the DR lost to South Korea 3-2 (25-20, 17-25, 25-18, 15-25 and 15-12), then defeated Kenya (25-19, 25-18, 25-10). The DR then played Japan on Monday, 2 August 2021 and won that game (10-25, 20-25, 25-19, 25-19) to make the quarter finals.
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Claro TV – 4 x 400 m mixed relay Tokyo 2020
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ESPN
Diario Libre
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Listin Diario
Marca Claro
El Dia
2 August 2021