Cuba's national baseball team arrived Tuesday in Korea to train here ahead of the the Summer Games in Beijing, accompanied by the high-profile son of former Cuban President Fidel Castro, an official was quoted as saying by Yonhap News Agency.

The baseball powerhouse that won three Olympic gold medals from 1992-2004 is one of a host of Olympic teams that have come here after being lured by Korea's environmental conditions, which are better than those of Beijing.

Antonio Castro, the 39-year-old son of the retired Cuban president, accompanied the team as a physician but declined to give an interview to journalists at Incheon International Airport. Castro also serves as a vice head of Cuba's baseball governing body.

The 44-member team will train in environmentally pristine southern Korea and leave for China just a day before the Beijing Olympics begin on August 8, Park Geun-chan of the Korean Baseball Organization said by phone.

During its training here, the team hopes to play friendlies with local professional squads, Cuban coach Antonio Pacheco told Korean reporters at the airport.

July 16, 2008

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