Obama embraces Cuba's pastime with a spot of baseball diplomacy
Source: Guardian
Obama embraces Cuba's pastime with a spot of baseball diplomacy
In the most relaxed event of the US president’s historic visit, it really was the taking part that mattered as Cuba’s national team took on the Tampa Bay Rays
Dan Roberts at the Estadio Latinoamericano in Havana
@RobertsDan
Tuesday 22 March 2016 16.04 EDT
After an awkward three days of politics, it was baseball that finally brought Cuba and the United States out from half a century of cold war deep freeze on Tuesday, as Barack Obama’s historic visit concluded with a frenzied, but friendly, sporting clash.
They have been playing baseball in Cuba since 1864, but there can have been few more eagerly anticipated games than that between the Cuban national team and the US Major League Baseball side the Tampa Bay Rays.
Contests between American and Cuban sides are rare enough – it wasn’t until 1999 that the Baltimore Orioles became the first MLB team to play here since the revolution – but a chance to best a Florida team in front of the first US president here since 1928 raised the excitement to fever pitch.
Long queues of fans waited out the Estadio Latinoamericano, the Havana home of Cuba’s national sport, and caused a worrying crush on the way in. Yet, despite partisan roars of “Cuba, Cuba” at every opportunity, the packed crowd saved plenty of noise for the Obama family as they made their way to their seats next to the Cuban president, Raúl Castro.
Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/22/obama-cuba-baseball-diplomacy
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Derek Jeter Emerges at Rays-Cuba Game in Havana
By DAVID WALDSTEIN
MARCH 22, 2016
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Derek Jeter spoke with President Obama at the exhibition game on Tuesday. Credit Enrique De La Osa/Reuters
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After a year spent mostly out of the spotlight, Derek Jeter was front and center Tuesday afternoon, sitting in the stands in Havana to watch the Tampa Bay Rays take on the Cuban national team, joking with President Obama, who was sitting nearby, and taking part in an interview on ESPN, which broadcast the game.
Jeter made the trip to Cuba as part of Major League Baseball’s delegation and was in good spirts, talking with the president about playing golf and telling ESPN that in order to further his aim to become a team owner, he planned to become more engaged in baseball than he had been during his first year of retirement.
“I’m going to start doing it again,” he said, “because I’ve always been very vocal about my next goal, and my desire is to be part of an ownership group. So I have to start paying attention.”
. . .
“This is the first time I’ve watched a game from the stands,” he said. “I’ve been back to Yankee Stadium a few times when they’ve retired the numbers of some former teammates, but I haven’t actually sat down and watched the games, so it’s kind of fun to do it in person.”
More:
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/23/sports/derek-jeter-emerges-at-rays-cuba-game-in-havana.html?_r=0
