Dr. Alcides Sagarra Carón (born August 18, 1936) is a Cuban sport official best known for moulding the amateur boxing team into a
dominant force during his reign as the coach of the Cuban National Boxing Team (1964–2001,) for which he gained an honorary soubriquet "El Maestro".
Career
Carón was born in
Santiago de Cuba
Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana.
The municipality extends over , and contains t ...
.
From 1951-1954 he was an active boxer himself but quit due to his asthma. He worked as a mechanic but kept studying at the Sports Institute Manuel Fajardo.
In 1962 he became coach who quickly gained the reputation of being a strict disciplinarian, in 1963 he prepared the boxers of Havanna Province for the national championships. He sought the help of East German professor Kurt Rosentil to develop all kinds of innovative training methods.
He was so successful that as early as 1964 he was promoted to national head coach.
Also instrumental was Andrey Chervonenko, a Soviet coach sent to share training techniques as a display of
Communism solidarity.
The first stars of the team were Enrique Regüeiferos (63,5 kilograms), Rolando Garbey (71 kg) and Roberto Caminero (60 kg) Cuba's first PanAm champ 1963.
Cuba medaled at the Olympics for the first time in 1968 (Regüeiferos, Garbey).
He helped to develop the skills of amateur superstars like three time Olympic gold medalists
Teofilo Stevenson who upset
Duane Bobick
Duane Bobick (born August 24, 1950) is a retired boxer from the United States. As an amateur he won the gold medal at the 1971 Pan American Games and fought at the 1972 Olympics. He then turned professional in 1973 and retired in 1979 with a rec ...
by KO in 1972 to start heavyweight dominance and
Félix Savón
Félix Savón Fabre (born 22 September 1967) is a retired Cuban amateur boxer, who competed from 1980 to 2000. Considered one of the all-time greatest amateur boxers, he became three-time Olympic gold medalist, and the World Champion six times ...
.
In 1992 the
University of Havana
The University of Havana or (UH, ''Universidad de La Habana'') is a university located in the Vedado district of Havana, the capital of the Republic of Cuba. Founded on January 5, 1728, the university is the oldest in Cuba, and one of the first ...
awarded him a scientific title of "
Doctor en Ciencias Pedagógicas". 2001 he retired from his post as national coach the post is now occupied by
Sarbelio Fuentes.
His record is 32 Olympic Golds, 63 (senior) World championships, 64 junior/cadet World titles.
He also has a minor function in an
AIBA
The International Boxing Association (IBA), previously known as the Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA), is an independent sport organization that sanctions amateur (Olympic-style) boxing matches and awards world and subordinate cha ...
commission.
Fighters trained
Cuban National Team boxers
Cuban boxers who later turned pro
Other Cuban boxers
References
External links
Article
1936 births
Living people
Cuban boxing trainers
Cuban male boxers
Cuban sports coaches
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