Ranked number three in the over 80 kilograms division, Alba showed fluency in his movements, hand and leg speed and precision in his attacks to defeat Su (12), who gave no respite in the cold Hall A of the Makuhari Messe.

In a day of mixed feelings, the Pan American champion in Toronto 2015 lost 8-11 in his debut against the Macedonian Dejan Georgievski (14), who surprised all and sundry in the discipline.

Georgievski advanced to the discussion of the crown and made the continental silver medalist be reborn like a Phoenix bird in Lima 2019, who did not disappoint in the repechage, defeating Ivory Coast’s Seydou Gbane 8-2 in an uncomplicated bout.

At 27, Alba, universal leader in Puebla 2013 and Manchester 2019, improved the ninth place achieved in Rio de Janeiro 2016 and became the sixth Cuban taekwondoka Olympic medalist.

The list is completed with Angel Volodia (gold) and Urbia Melendez (silver) in Sydney 2000; Yanelys Labrada (silver, Athens 2004), Daynellis Montejo (bronze, Beijing 2008) and Robelys Despaigne (bronze, London 2012). According to sports authorities, Cuba landed in Tokyo with the aim of placing itself among the top 20 countries in the general standings.

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