Cuba says 8 World Baseball Classic delegation members were denied US visas – Chicago Tribune
Eight members of the Cuban delegation were denied visas to the United States for the World Baseball Classic, the Cuban Baseball and Softball Federation (FCBS) announced Thursday.
Cuba is scheduled to face Puerto Rico, Colombia, Panama and Canada in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in the WBC pools, scheduled for March 5-17.
Among the Cubans who were denied visas were FCBS President Juan Reinaldo Pérez Pardo and Secretary General Carlos del Pino Muñoz. Pitching coach Pedro Luis Lazo was also turned down.
A person with direct knowledge said all Cuban players and coaches except Lazo had received visas. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because no announcement has been made about the players’ visas. The State Department declined to comment on the Cuban complaint, citing visa secrecy laws, but a U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential matter, also said that none of those turned away were actual athletes but rather executives and civil servants.
“The response from the United States, more than a month after the presentation of these requests, ignores the reasons on which they are based, the most fundamental principles of sport and the commitments assumed by the countries hosting such events,” the Federation said in a statement.
The Cubans finished third in the previous WBC in 2023. The team has exhibition games scheduled next week against the Kansas City Royals and Cincinnati Reds in Arizona.
Cuba is among a list of seven countries subject to travel restrictions to the United States, alongside Burundi, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
Last year, the Cacique Mara team, from Maracaibo, Venezuela, was denied a visa to the United States and missed the Senior Baseball World Series.
The Cuban Federation said it would “analyze how to proceed and inform in due time.”
AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum and Matthew Lee contributed to this report.
