HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuban President Fidel Castro (news - web sites) celebrated his 77th birthday with a cherished present: defeat of his arch-enemy the United States at the hands of Cuba's baseball team.
The Cubans beat the United States 3-1 on Tuesday night in the Dominican Republic to win the Pan American Games baseball gold medal for the ninth time in a row.
The triumphant players chanted "Viva Cuba, Viva Fidel" on the field at the end of the game and dedicated their gold medals to Castro for his birthday.
At a concert staged by Cuba's Communist Youth on Havana's Malecon waterfront, 3,000 people watched the baseball victory on a giant screen and, at midnight, performers cut a large cake for Castro as the band played the happy birthday tune.
The Cuban leader was feted on Wednesday evening at Havana's Karl Marx Theater where he defended Cuba's communist government, which has faced widespread international condemnation this year for cracking down on dissidents.
Cuba has the world's "most humanitarian" social system, with five times more doctors per citizen than rich countries like Britain, he told 4,000 medical graduates.
In a swipe at the United States, Castro said Cuba, "a small island next to a giant," had survived four decades of American trade sanctions and the collapse of its former international mentor the Soviet Union.
The Cubans beat the United States 3-1 on Tuesday night in the Dominican Republic to win the Pan American Games baseball gold medal for the ninth time in a row.
The triumphant players chanted "Viva Cuba, Viva Fidel" on the field at the end of the game and dedicated their gold medals to Castro for his birthday.
At a concert staged by Cuba's Communist Youth on Havana's Malecon waterfront, 3,000 people watched the baseball victory on a giant screen and, at midnight, performers cut a large cake for Castro as the band played the happy birthday tune.
The Cuban leader was feted on Wednesday evening at Havana's Karl Marx Theater where he defended Cuba's communist government, which has faced widespread international condemnation this year for cracking down on dissidents.
Cuba has the world's "most humanitarian" social system, with five times more doctors per citizen than rich countries like Britain, he told 4,000 medical graduates.
In a swipe at the United States, Castro said Cuba, "a small island next to a giant," had survived four decades of American trade sanctions and the collapse of its former international mentor the Soviet Union.
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