Cuban javelin thrower Yiselena Ballar (© Lilian Cid)
Excited to make her first international trip like many present in Nairobi, Yiselena Ballar is aware of her country’s history in the javelin, the event where she wants to emulate her coach and bring gold to Cuba at the World Athletics U20 Championships.
Ballar vividly remembers the conversation with her coach Xiomara Rivero, the first world U20 champion in 1986. “She told me the event was very deep in her time and how that gold helped her motivate further in her career," she says.
The youngest of three siblings seems to have received the athletic genes from her mother Maritza Rojas, a former national level volleyball player, and her twin brothers, who practised boxing.
She was introduced to athletics by accident. While in a physical education class in a field behind her school in Cienfuegos, central Cuba, a baseball ball fell right beside her. The coach asked her to throw it back. She did and surpassed him. An athletics coach, Ivan, discovered her talent for throws and soon convinced her and her parents to take up the sport.
Early in the sport, she did a number of events, from long to high jump, sprint hurdles and 80m. “I did well in all, except the 1000m,” she recalls.
As she grew older, the javelin became her specialty and she started to train under the guidance of former 60m thrower Herminia Bouza.
At the young age of 15, she threw 54.09m with the 500g javelin in 2018 and that performance sealed her entry into the national U20 team.
Under her coach Rivero’s guidance, success soon followed. While she still competed with her U18 implement, she tried the 600g javelin and threw it 56.62m, a national U18 record.
While the 2020 season was cut short due to Covid-19, Ballar improved her national U18 record with the 600g javelin to 57.46m, a result that earned her her first national senior title.
“Immediately after I returned home and tried as best as I could to stay in form," she explains. Back at the national training centre in September 2020, she resumed a regular training schedule while following Covid-19 protocols. Success soon followed and in her fourth competition of 2021, she became the second Cuban U20 athlete to break the 60m barrier with the new implement.
“I was so happy when they measured it at 60.84m. It was my last attempt and I was not expecting it early in the season to be honest. I jumped out of joy and it reassured me a lot moving forward,” Ballar remembers vividly.
It is world U20 record-holder Yulenmis Aguilar who holds the Cuban mark with 63.86m.
Ballar added another 60m throw two weeks later and has remained consistent over 58m in the lead-up to Nairobi.
With a direct final, she looks forward to competing against Greece’s world leader Elina Tzengko, who threw 63.96m last year but that could not be ratified as an official record, plus Serbia’s Adriana Vilagos (60.94m) and the rest of the field.
“I am excited and thankful to be here (in Nairobi). I trust in my abilities and will focus on that come the final,” says Ballar, who keeps daily contact with her coach and family.
She is also aware of her country’s history in the event, primarily among women, with Rivero’s world U20 title and the success of former world record-holder Osleidys Menendez, twice world U20 champion and winner of the 2004 Olympic gold and the 2005 world title.
Ballar also finds a good source of encouragement from Maria Caridad Colon, the 1980 Olympic gold medal winner and Latin America’s first female Olympic champion. “She comes to see me at competitions," Ballar explains. "She gives me some good pieces of advice.”
A fan of police series', the young 1.80m tall athlete relies on her strength to take the spear far. “I am working on my run-up and better the rotation in my right foot. If I can improve that, I will be able to throw much farther," she says.
“I was also very encouraged to watch the women’s Olympic final and am regularly checking javelin videos to learn new tips.”
Beyond Nairobi, Ballar has set bigger dreams for herself. “I love the javelin, its technique and the challenge of how far you can throw it," she adds.
"My coach tells me I can achieve great things in the sport. I will continue to work hard and stay healthy. My main goal is to compete at the Olympic Games and be among the best in the world.”
Javier Clavelo Robinson for World Athletics
