Bottles thrown at track during Marileidy Paulino's record-breaking race at Santo Domingo Games

An investigation is underway after two bottles were thrown onto the track during the women's 400-meter final at the Santo Domingo 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games. The incident occurred Wednesday night as Dominican star Marileidy Paulino was on her way to a dominant victory, with the bottles landing just seconds before she crossed the finish line.

The projectiles were aimed toward the runners competing at high speed. Any object on the track at that velocity posed a significant risk to the physical integrity of Paulino, Cuba's Roxana Gómez, St. Vincent's Shafiqua Maloney, and the other athletes. One bottle struck the track directly behind Gómez, who was in second place.

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That is under investigation. Our security team is following up through the cameras.

"That is under investigation. Our security team is following up through the cameras," a source connected to the Games' organization reported. The source described the act as "an attack" due to the danger it presented during one of the event's fastest races. The identity and intention of the person who threw the bottles remain unknown, and no arrests have been reported.

Despite the dangerous disruption, Paulino secured the gold medal with a time of 48.94 seconds, breaking her own Games record. The incident, however, has cast a shadow over the event, prompting organizers to review security footage to identify the individual responsible and determine appropriate sanctions for endangering the athletes.

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That is an attack