Havana -- Why is the oldest and most famous boxing gym in Cuba named after a swimmer? I'll tell you in a second.
One thing I love about Latin countries is that they name their arenas after former athletes. You may find a Home Depot in Mexico, but you certainly won't find "Home Depot Stadium," or any other ridiculous corporate name. Same holds true here in Havana. The top indoor sports venue is named after Kid Chocolate. Another gym in Havana is named after Roberto Balado, the great super heavyweight Olympic champion who tragically died in a car accident.
Then there is Rafael Trejo Gym in Old Havana. Outside of the national team's training center -- La Finca -- which is actually protected by armed guards and off-limits to all but a chosen few, Trejo Gym is tops on the island. Everyone from Kid Chocolate to Teofilio Stevenson to Felix Savon to Yuriorkis Gamboa has trained in this open-air gymnasium. It also has bleechers so fans can watch boxing exhibitions staged there. So who was Trejo? I was told that he was once one of Cuba's top swimmers, but he holds such honor on the island now because he was a very important member of Fidel Castro's revolution. So now, his name is immortalized through a boxing gym. -- CASSIDY