The Cuban beach volleyball duos of Damián Gómez and Eblis Veranes, along with Kailin Garrido and Maykelin Drik, continue their preparations on the courts of the National School with their closest focus on the North, Central America and Caribbean (NORCECA) Tour stop to be held in Mexico.

Without forgetting two major commitments—the Central American and Caribbean Games this summer in Santo Domingo and the Olympic qualifier in Puerto Rico—the nation's top two pairs are now finalizing details to continue accumulating ranking points for the Puerto Rican event.

The Mexican tournament will take place at the Playa Miramar Sports Complex from May 22 to 25, featuring men's and women's pairs from 13 countries.

Organizers have already announced the presence of teams from the United States, Canada, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Bermuda, Costa Rica, the Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Mexico.

In the Cuban duos' debut on the current Tour, held on the sands of Güibia Beach in Santo Domingo, Gómez and Veranes won the silver medal after losing 1-2 to Mexicans Antonio Lares and Carlos Andrés Ayala in the men's final.

According to the website www.norceca.net, they lost the first set 17-21, rallied in the second (21-11), but fell in the third (7-15), a result with which the Mexicans ended their undefeated streak.

In the semifinals, the Cubans defeated the U.S. pair of Charles Siragusa and Rowdy Lennon 2-0 (21-19, 21-17), who went on to take bronze with a 2-0 victory (24-22, 21-18) over Mexicans Miguel Sarabia and Jotman Osuna.

They completed their group phase without setbacks in Group D, with wins against the Honduran pair of Vigil-Serrano 2-0 (21-9, 21-3) and El Salvador's Gabo and R. Vargas 2-0 (21-19, 21-13).

Their triumphant debut came with a 2-0 victory (21-16, 21-19) over Costa Rica's Araya-Grant, followed by a 2-0 win (21-14, 21-19) over the Dominican pair of Jesús-Martinez.

Meanwhile, Garrido and Maykelin Drik finished in ninth place after defeating Canadians Anna Prokofieva and Claire Crossfield 2-1 (18-21, 21-11, 15-11).

Previously, they split honors, first falling 0-2 (18-21, 18-21) to the Dominican pair of Paniagua-Cleto and then defeating Dominican duo Zoe-Reyes 2-0 (21-10, 21-19) at the start of the fight for positions nine through twelve.

One day earlier, they defeated El Salvador's Tunes-Vargas 2-0 (21-6, 21-9), but later lost 1-2 (21-19, 19-21, 15-13) to Mexico's Torres-Flores.

The gold, silver, and bronze medals in the women's tournament went to pairs from the Dominican Republic, Canada, and Mexico, respectively.

Santo Domingo also featured pairs from 13 countries competing for one of the seven remaining berths for the Lima 2027 Pan American Games.

As usual, Cuba will host two stops in Varadero, from June 3-7 and July 1-5, according to the calendar published on www.norceca.net.

The beach volleyball tournament at the Dominican multi-sport event will take place from July 25-31, and both Cuban pairs have already secured their participation. They must also attend the Olympic qualifier for the Los Angeles 2028 Games, scheduled for November 4-9 in Puerto Rico.

Other stops on the NORCECA Circuit include Costa Rica (April 16-20), Nicaragua (May 14-16), El Salvador (May 28-June 1), the Dominican Republic (June 18-22), Mexico (date pending), Honduras (July 9-13), and El Salvador (July 13-17).

Cuba now knows its rivals and groups for the preliminary phase of the Central American and Caribbean Games, a competition that will feature 22 pairs distributed across four sections.

The official website of the Dominican multi-sport event announces that the Cuban pairs appear in brackets D (men) and B (women), respectively, with competition beginning July 25-29.

In addition to the representatives from the largest of the Antilles, the men's teams from Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Trinidad and Tobago, Martinique, and El Salvador will also compete, while the women's bracket will feature teams from the Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and Trinidad and Tobago.

Under the established format, the top two finishers from each group will advance to the quarterfinals, scheduled for July 30, with the semifinals and final set for July 31.