Cuba to compete in World Baseball Classic despite visa denials

By Daniel Trotta

HAVANA, March 1 (Reuters) - Cuba has decided to compete in the upcoming World Baseball Classic despite eight members of its delegation being denied U.S. visas.

"We reiterate the discriminatory, politicized, and unethical nature of the decision to deny visas to eight members of our delegation, but we will not withdraw from an event in which we have participated since its inception," the Cuban Baseball and Softball Federation said late on Saturday.

The visa denials on Wednesday occurred during a period of fraught U.S.-Cuban relations, with Washington imposing a virtual oil blockade on the island nation, exacerbating fuel shortages and blackouts.

Those affected were mostly support staff, including the president and secretary general of Cuba's baseball federation, but pitching coach Pedro Luis Lazo, a former star pitcher in his playing days, also was excluded.

The Cuban federation said it was told by U.S. officials the visas were denied because of the island's failure to cooperate with the U.S. on immigration enforcement, a contention Havana says is false. The U.S. embassy in Havana did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Cuba's team is preparing for the upcoming sixth World Baseball Classic - the sport's version of the World Cup - with its first game scheduled for Friday in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory.

The Cuban team will play a pair of exhibition games against Major League Baseball teams at their spring training sites in Arizona this week.

Cuba was once a powerhouse in international baseball, when it was largely an amateur endeavor, winning three Olympic gold medals from 1992 to 2004.

Since 2006 Cuba has competed in the World Baseball Classic, with MLB stars making it a professional event. Cuba reached the semi finals at the last tournament in 2023 before losing to the U.S.