5 Pesos Boxing

Cuba's late-1980s commemorative program was prolific to the point of saturation — the state mint issued dozens of collector pieces annually, most destined for foreign hard-currency markets rather than domestic circulation. This boxing issue arrived as Cuban amateur boxing was at its absolute peak internationally, with the national team having dominated Olympic and World Amateur Championship competition throughout the decade under Alcides Sagarra's coaching program. The coins were sold abroad precisely because Cubans had no access to the convertible currency needed to purchase them.