Near a decaying training complex outside of Havana, Cuba, a group of young women are gathered in an attempt to make history. They’re here to compete in a sport they were previously barred from practicing in their country: boxing.

“We’re in a special era,” says Jorge Noriega, a trainer for the newly formed women’s boxing team in Cuba. The island has a storied history when it comes to the sport; their men’s team has brought home more than 41 Olympic gold medals and 78 medals overall, second only to the U.S.

However, women were prohibited from boxing at the Olympic level for years. In 2012, when women’s boxing was officially added to the Olympic roster, the Cuban government refused to let women compete, citing fears around pregnancy risks and women’s health issues. After a series of high-level government meetings and clinical studies, Cuba officially allowed them to begin practicing in December 2022.

“We’d been waiting for this for years – this is a conquest for women,” says Elianni de la Caridad Garcia, one of the women on the team. While many of them have been training for less than a year, they’ve already had some success at the Pan American Games last year, and they’re just getting started.

Most days, before their training starts, the women share dance routines, flirt with their male counterparts, and gossip for a bit. But once coaches like Santiago Suarez arrive, they tape up their hands and prepare for their training. They have a job to do, and a lot of them have sacrificed too much to get derailed now.

After a light jog, they find their place in the gym and start with circuit training and shadowboxing, or boxeo de sombra. To call the facility modest would be a massive understatement: The training area consists of rusted free weights, two old makeshift boxing rings, and hand-me-down headgear and gloves from the men’s team.

But they keep going, knowing there’s a lot at stake. Bringing home Olympic gold — and a sense of pride and glory to their families — means that much more in Cuba, which has struggled under the crushing weight of a 60-plus-year embargo. The island has continued to face chronic food shortages, lack of resources, rolling blackouts, and economic challenges that have forced many of its citizens to eventually leave.

This year’s national team has a clear focus: They want to come home as champions and open the door for more women boxers in the future.

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