In spite of all the obstacles in front of her, Cuban boxer Namibia Flores Rodriguez keeps fighting. While the country ranks as one of the most successful in the history of Olympics, women are forbidden from competing in the sport at the massive international event.

Rodriguez, 40, has been training for years in hopes that Cuba will lift the ban. Her story has garnered plenty of press and female boxing hopefuls have come from all over the world to be trained by her.

“If they recognize women’s boxing when I can no longer compete because of my age, well, I will content myself with serving as an example for the young women who’ll come after me…and, if I can’t accompany them as a boxer, then I hope to do so as a trainer…or even as the glove-holder!” she told the Havana Times last year.

In this short film by Maceo Frost, Rodriguez’s struggle is interspersed with the sights and sounds of her community in Cuba.