Dominican Republic outperforms in Tokyo

Tokyo has become the most prolific event for the Quiqueyans with 3 medals, with baseball, athletics and volleyball still to be contested where there are possibilities.
The medal won early Monday morning by weightlifter Crismery Santana raised to 3 the number of medals for the Dominican Republic in Tokyo 2020.

The silver medals won by the mixed relay team in the 4×400 and Zacarías Bonnat, and Santana’s bronze are the highest number of triumphs achieved by the Caribbean country in the same edition, surpassing the two medals won in Beijing 2008 and London 2012.

At the moment, the Dominican Republic ranks 58th among all the countries in Tokyo, and at the moment it does not surpass the aforementioned editions in the table due to the gold obtained by Félix Sánchez in both Games, which are assigned a higher value to determine the positions in the medal table.

In London, the Dominicans finished in 46th place thanks to ‘El Súper Sánchez’ and the silver obtained by Luguelín Santos in the 400 meters and in 1984 in 45th place.

Félix Díaz won gold in the 64 kilograms and Gabriel Mercedes won silver in taekwondo at the 2008 Beijing Games, but on that occasion he finished 47th among all the countries.

With 11 days of competitions and 8 more to go, the Dominican Republic overcame its slow start in the Games, where all the boxers, a discipline in which 7 competitors participated, and other disciplines such as swimming and equestrian were eliminated.

Now that the historical total has been surpassed, hopes remain to continue adding medals for the participating Dominican delegation with the two team sports still in the fight.

The Dominican Baseball Team has had two disappointing defeats against South Korea and Japan, in which the Asian rivals came from behind in the ninth inning to take the victories.

In spite of this, the Dominican Republic remains in the competition and will face Israel in the first playoff, avoiding a single defeat, since if they lose they would be eliminated from the competition.

In women’s volleyball, the Queens of the Caribbean made it to the quarterfinals by defeating Japan in a thrilling match in the group stage. They will face the United States for a place in the semis.

In addition to this, Marileidy Paulino, already a medalist with the silver quartet, is looking for her place in the individual 400 meters and is one of the great promises of Dominican athletics today.

In total, the Dominican Republic has won 10 medals in its history, 8 of them from 2008 to date, starting with Pedro Julio Nolasco in boxing in Los Angeles 1984.