Introduction
Ely Malik Reyes stepped onto the cordless platform and began delivering powerful punches and spectacular flying kicks against his combatant. Despite losing the fight, he won a major victory by becoming the first transgender athlete to officially compete in a Cuban sports league. This milestone showcases both the progress and ongoing challenges faced by the LGBTQ community in Cuba.
A Historic Milestone
Reyes, a 26-year-old transgender man, competed for the first time in the male 60/65-kilogram (132/143-pound) category of sanda, a demanding contact sport that blends martial arts like kung fu with kickboxing. This June 1 milestone marks a significant step toward inclusion in Cuba, one of Latin America’s most progressive countries regarding LGBTQ rights.
Overcoming Challenges
Despite the progress, Reyes acknowledges numerous challenges. These include the lack of medications, restrictive laws for changing gender on official documents, and the suspicious looks he sometimes receives from people in the street. “Educating society doesn’t happen in two days,” he said.
Reyes, who lives with his girlfriend in a colorful house on the outskirts of Havana, supports himself by repairing air conditioners, as his sanda fights are unpaid. He has been on hormone therapy for two years but does not want full genital reassignment surgery. His transition began over four years ago when he visited Cuba’s Center for Sexual Education and consulted with a psychologist.
Hormone Therapy and Legal Hurdles
Reyes’s journey involved consulting endocrinologists and undergoing tests to obtain a “tarjetón,” a special card that allows Cubans to purchase medication at pharmacies. However, as Cuba’s economic crisis deepened, medications became scarce, forcing Reyes to rely on expensive testosterone brought from abroad. “I’m an athlete; I can’t neglect my hormone treatment. … I have to stay on top of it,” he said.
Changing his identity in official documents posed another challenge. While Reyes was able to legally change his name last year, his ID card still displays an “F” for female. This is because Cuba’s current law requires full genital reassignment surgery for this change — something he does not want to do.
Potential Legal Reforms
LGBTQ activists in Cuba are hopeful that a new Civil Registry law currently being drafted in the National Assembly will allow people to change their gender on their ID cards without requiring surgery. These changes stem from Cuba’s 2019 constitution and the 2022 Family Code, which expanded LGBTQ rights, including allowing same-sex couples to marry and adopt.
Acceptance and Support
Despite his ID still formally identifying him as female, sports authorities accepted Reyes’s male status based on his hormone treatments, medical reports, and self-identification. This allowed him to compete in the male category of the Cuban Fighters League.
Reyes’s coach, Frank Cazón Cárdenas, the president of Cuba’s sanda community, played a crucial role in this process. He discussed Reyes’s participation with other male team members and secured approval from the powerful Cuban Sports Institute, which ultimately authorized Reyes to compete in the male category.
Community and Cultural Change
Cuba’s LGBTQ community celebrated Reyes’s milestone, noting it was the result of a hard-fought battle. Francisco “Paquito” Rodríguez Cruz, a well-known LGBTQ rights activist in Cuba, stated, “It was only a matter of time. It’s the logical consequence of what has been done in the last 15 or 20 years.”
Conclusion
Ely Malik Reyes’s participation as the first transgender athlete in a Cuban sports league is a significant step forward for LGBTQ rights in Cuba. While challenges remain, this milestone reflects the ongoing cultural process of change and the community’s dedication to achieving greater inclusion and acceptance.