2024-04-06 20:07:03
Text: Editorial Cuba Noticias 360
Photo: Javier Sotomayor / Facebook
A popular proverb says that “son of a cat, hunts a mouse” and it could well apply to Jaxier Sotomayor Gómez, son of the legendary Cuban jumper Javier Sotomayor, owner of the world record in the specialty for more than three decades.
The 16-year-old son of the Cuban Olympic champion in Barcelona 1992 surpassed the two-meter height barrier this Sunday for the first time in his fledgling career, winning the Absolute Club Indoor Championship in Madrid.
Jaxier managed to jump over 2.01 meters and with that performance he once again destroyed the Spanish sub-18 record after the 1.99 that he had set in 2023. The formidable nature of his performance was translated into a Facebook post made by his own father.
“Today my happiness overflows, just on the eve of the 35th anniversary of my indoor world record,” wrote with joy the nicknamed “Prince of Heights” who on March 4, 1989 flew above 2.43 meters to hang the gold medal at the Universal “indoor” Championships in Budapest.
The now also successful businessman evaluated his pupil’s work: “It was a jump of 2.01 meters. A height that we have been working towards and it has arrived at a very special moment for me… We achieved a first goal, and I speak in plural because it is difficult for me to define paternal love.”
“Soto”, as he is also popularly known on the Island, also highlighted the age at which his son achieved this important result, although he himself already had jumps of over 2.30 at that time in his life.
But Jaxier Sotomayor is aware of the challenge he faced when he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps. In an interview with the influential Iberian newspaper El País a couple of years ago he said that he was not afraid to dedicate himself to high jumping, “on the contrary, it motivates me.”
For now, he has the best possible coach on the planet, although Sotomayor Sr. is not officially dedicated to that role. Furthermore, his physical conditions, very similar to those of his mother, also predict an excellent future for him representing Spain, the country of his birth.