| Pan American Games | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Games | |
| Abbreviation | Pan Am Games |
|---|---|
| First event | 1951 Pan American Games inBuenos Aires, Argentina |
| Occur every | Four years |
| Last event | 2023 Pan American Games inSantiago, Chile |
| Next event | 2027 Pan American Games inLima, Peru |
| Purpose | Multi-sport event for nations in the American continents |
| Olympic Games |
|---|
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| Main topics |
| Games |
| Regional games |
| Sub-regional games |
| Defunct games |
ThePan American Games, known as thePan Am Games, is acontinentalmulti-sport event in the Americas first held in 1951. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of the Americas, every four years, the year beforeSummer Olympics. It is the second-oldest continental games in the world. The onlyWinter Pan American Games were held in 1990. In2021, theJunior Pan American Games was held for the first time specifically for young athletes.[1][2][3][4] ThePan American Sports Organization is the governing body of the Pan American Games movement, whose structure and actions are defined by theOlympic Charter.[5]
The most recent event was theXIX Pan American Games, held inSantiago from 20 October to 5 November 2023.[6] TheXX Pan American Games will be held in 2027. Since theXV Pan American Games in 2007, host cities are contracted to manage both the Pan American andParapan American Games,[5] in which athletes with physical disabilities compete with one another. The Parapan American Games are held immediately following the Pan American Games.
The Pan American Games Movement consists ofinternational sports federations,National Olympic Committees recognized by PASO, and organizing committees for each specific Pan American Games. As the decision-making body, PASO is responsible for choosing the host city for each Pan American Games. The host city is responsible for organizing and funding a celebration of the Games consistent with theOlympic Charter and rules. The Pan-Am Games program, consisting of thesports to be contested at the Games, is determined by PASO. The celebration of the Games encompasses many rituals and symbols, such as the flag and torch, and theopening and closing ceremonies. Over 5,000 athletes compete at the Pan American Games in 36 sports and nearly 400 events. The first, second, and third-place finishers in each event receive gold, silver, and bronze medals, respectively.[7]
The idea of holding a Pan American Games was first raised at the1932 Summer Olympics inLos Angeles, where Latin American representatives of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) suggested that a competition among all the countries in the Americas should be created.[8] During thePan-American Exposition atDallas in 1937, a limited sports program was staged. These includedathletics,boxing andwrestling, among others. This program was considered a success and a meeting of Olympic officials from the Americas was held.[9][10]
At the first Pan American Sports Congress, held inBuenos Aires in 1940, the participants decided that the first games should be held in Buenos Aires in 1942. The plans had to be postponed because ofWorld War II. A second Pan American Sports Congress held in London during the1948 Summer Olympics reconfirmed Buenos Aires as the choice of host city for the inaugural games, which wereheld in 1951. The games began on February 25[11] of that year, and offered 18 sports.[8] Countries and territories that were part of theCommonwealth of Nations such as Canada did not compete at the first Pan American Games.[12] The second games were held inMexico City, Mexico. Competitions started on March 12 and included 2,583 athletes from 22 countries, competing in 17 sports.[13] The Pan American Games have subsequently been held every four years.[13]
While the inaugural 1951 Games hosted 2,513 participants representing 14 nations, the2019 Pan American Games involved 6,680 competitors from 41 countries.[14] During the games most athletes and officials are housed in thePan American Games village. This village is intended to be a self-contained home for all the participants. It is furnished with cafeterias, health clinics, and locations for religious expression.[15]
PASO allows nations to compete that do not meet the strict requirements for political sovereignty that other international organizations demand. As a result, colonies and dependencies are permitted to set up their own National Olympic Committees. This includes territories such asPuerto Rico andBermuda, which compete as separate nations despite being under the jurisdiction of another power.[16]
There have been attempts to hold Winter Pan American Games throughout the history of the games, but these have had little success.[17] The organizers of the 1951 Pan American Games in Buenos Aires planned to stage winter events later in the year, but dropped the idea due to lack of interest.[18] Another difficulty is that the Americas cover both hemispheres, which creates scheduling issues related to reverse seasons.
Lake Placid, New York tried to organize Winter Games in 1959, but again not enough countries expressed interest. The plans were eventually cancelled.[17]
In 1988, members of PASO voted to hold the first Pan American Winter Games atLas Leñas, Argentina in September 1989. It was further agreed that Winter Games would be held every four years. But lack of snow forced the postponement of the games until 16–22 September 1990,[17] when only eight countries sent 97 athletes to Las Leñas. Of that total, 76 were from just three countries: Argentina, Canada, and the United States. Weather was unseasonably warm and again there was little snow, so only three Alpine Skiing events were staged: the Slalom, Giant Slalom, and Super G. The United States and Canada won all 18 medals between them.
PASO awarded the second Pan American Winter Games toSantiago, Chile for 1993. The United States warned that it would not take part unless a full schedule of events was held. The Santiago organizing committee eventually gave up on planning the Games after theUnited States Olympic Committee declined to participate, and the idea has not been revived since.[17]
On 16 January 2019 PASO announced the creation of the Junior Pan American Games. This event, inspired by theYouth Olympic Games, is exclusively for athletes who are under 21 years of age, with fewer requirements on infrastructure and cost.[4][2][1]
For thefirst edition of the games, Panam Sports accepted candidate cities until 31 January.Cali, Colombia;Santa Ana, El Salvador; andMonterrey, Mexico were accepted as candidate cities.[19] Cali was chosen as the host city at the Executive Committee inSan José, Costa Rica on 27 March 2019.[20]
Panam Sports choseAsunción, Paraguay as the host for the2025 Junior Pan American Games.[21] Asunción received 32 out of 48 votes, whileSanta Marta, Colombia received the remaining 16 votes.
The Pan American Games Movement encompasses a number of national and international sporting organizations and federations, recognized media partners, athletes, officials, judges, and every other person and institution that agrees to abide by the rules of theOlympic Charter (which is the same as PASO's charter).[22] As the umbrella organization of theOlympic Movement, PASO is responsible for selecting the host city, overseeing the planning of the Pan American Games, updating and approving the sports program, and negotiating sponsorship and broadcasting rights.[7]
The Pan American Games Movement is made of three major elements:
Spanish and English are the official languages of the Pan American Games Movement. The other language used at each Pan American Games is the language of the host country. For example: at the2007 Pan American Games who was held inBrazil, the first language wasBrazilian Portuguese. Every proclamation (such as the announcement of each country during the parade of nations in the opening ceremony) is spoken in these three languages or the main two depending on whether the host country is an English or Spanish speaking country.[7]
The Pan American Games Movement uses symbols to represent the ideals embodied in thePan American Games charter. The Pan American Sports Organization flag displays the PASO logo on a white background. To highlight the close association between theInternational Olympic Committee and the Pan Am Games, the Olympic Rings were added to the flag in 1988. The flag has been hoisted during each celebration of the Games.[24] Due to an administrative issue, the flag was hoisted while the Olympic Hymn was played until the2007 Games. In 2011 Games, the new anthem was played for the first time. The anthem itself was chosen in 2007 and was adopted in 2008.
Similar to theOlympic flame, the Pan American Games flame is lit well before the Games are to commence. The flame was lit for the first games inOlympia, Greece. For subsequent games, the torch has been lit during the simulation of the Aztecnew fire ceremony held during theMezoamerican period, the ceremonies here held first in theCerro de la Estrella National Park inMexico City and later they moved the ceremony to thePyramid of the Sun located inTeotihuacan Pyramids Complex.[25] The only exception was for theSão Paulo games in 1963, when the torch was lit inBrasília by the indigenousGuaraní people and two ways were held as the country also hosted the1963 Summer Universiade inPorto Alegre. An Aztec older then lights the torch of the first relay bearer, thus initiating the Pan American torch relay that will carry the flame to the host city's main stadium, where it plays an important role in the opening ceremony.[7] Since 2011, the flame is required to be held during the games in the stadium which will host theathletics competition. If the Opening ceremony and athletics competition will be held in different stadiums, the flame will be required to move from one stadium to the other. Exceptions occurred in the1987,1999,2007 and2015 Games when they have only one cauldron. In some cases the flame burn in a cauldron placed outside the main stadium.[7]
The Pan American Gamesmascot, an animal or human figure representing the cultural heritage of the host country, was introduced in1979 inSan Juan, Puerto Rico.[26] It has played an important part on the Games identity and promotion. The mascot of the most recent Pan American Games, inSantiago de Chile, was Fiu, a seven color rush tyrant.
List of Games mascots:[27]
As mandated by the Olympic Charter, various elements frame the opening ceremony of the Pan American Games.[29] The Organizing Committee of each edition has the flexibility to choose the order of the opening ceremony program. But, it has been common since 2007 that the opening ceremonies starts with the nation anthem of the host country and the nations parade is held immediately afterwards, with the athletes grouped by nation. Argentina is traditionally the first nation to enter in order to honor the origins of the Pan American Games, similarly to how Greece enters first in theOlympic Games as the originator. Nations usually then enter the stadium alphabetically according to the host country's or city's official language, with the host country's athletes being the last to enter. During the1995 Pan American Games, which was hosted inMar del Plata, Argentina, the Argentine flag entered the stadium first, while the country's delegation entered last (similarly to the2004 Summer Olympics in Greece) and all delegations could sit in reserved areas in the stands of the main stadium. The speeches are given, formally opening the Games; the PANAM Sports Flag and Olympic Flag are raised and the oaths taken immediately afterwards.[29] The host nation then presents artistic displays of music, singing, dance, and theater representative of its culture and history.[29] The artistic presentations have grown in scale and complexity as successive hosts attempt to provide a ceremony that outlasts its predecessor's in terms of memorability. The opening ceremony of the 2011 Games held in Guadalajara, Mexico, reportedly cost $20 million, with much of the cost incurred in the artistic segment.[30]Finally, the Pan American torch is brought into the stadium and passed on until it reaches the final torch carrier—often a well-known and successful athlete from the host nation—who lights the Pan American Games flame in the stadium's cauldron.[7]
The closing ceremony of the Pan American Games takes place after all sporting events have concluded. Flag-bearers from each participating country enter the stadium, followed by the athletes who enter together, without any national distinction.
Two flags are hoisted while the corresponding national anthems are played: the flags of the current host country and of the country hosting the next Pan American Games.[7] The president of the organizing committee and the president of PASO make their closing speeches, the Games are officially closed, and the Pan American family is invited to participate at the next Games. The PanAm Sports Flag and the Olympic Flag are lowered and Pan-American flame is then extinguished.[7] In what is known as the Antwerp Ceremony, the highest authority of the city that organized the Games transfers a special Pan American Games flag to the president of PASO, who then passes it on to the current highest authority of the city hosting the next Games.[7] After these compulsory elements, the next host nation briefly introduces itself with artistic displays of dance and theater representative of its culture. The closing ceremony may include a fifteen-minute presentation from the next host city.[7]
At the conclusion of each event, medals are ceremonially presented by an IOC or PASO member to the first, second and third-place finishers. The medal winners stand on a three-tiered podium while receiving their medals.[31] After the medals are presented, the national flags of the three medalists are raised while thenational anthem of the gold medalist's country plays.[32] Volunteering citizens of the host country act as hosts during the medal ceremonies: they aid the officials who present the medals and act as flag-bearers.[33] For each event, the respective medal ceremony is held, at most, one day after the event's final. When athletics was scheduled for the last days, the men's marathon is run on the last day of the games, and the award ceremony is held before or during the closing ceremony.
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The athletes or teams who place first, second, or third in each event receive medals. The winners receive gold medals, while the runners-up receive silver medals and the third-place athletes are awarded bronze medals. In events contested by asingle-elimination tournament (most notably boxing), third place might not be determined and both semifinal losers receive bronze medals. PASO does not keep statistics of medals won, but National Olympic Committees and the media record medal statistics as a measure of success.
The top ten nations all time at the Pan American Games (minus medals won at the Winter Pan American Games):[35]
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  United States | 2,188 | 1,617 | 1,194 | 4,999 |
| 2 |  Cuba | 938 | 642 | 613 | 2,193 |
| 3 |  Canada | 537 | 776 | 918 | 2,231 |
| 4 |  Brazil | 449 | 476 | 656 | 1,581 |
| 5 |  Argentina | 343 | 391 | 501 | 1,235 |
| 6 |  Mexico | 310 | 362 | 617 | 1,289 |
| 7 |  Colombia | 164 | 210 | 292 | 666 |
| 8 |  Venezuela | 110 | 235 | 317 | 662 |
| 9 |  Chile | 69 | 141 | 205 | 415 |
| 10 |  Dominican Republic | 48 | 82 | 146 | 276 |
| Totals (10 entries) | 5,156 | 4,932 | 5,459 | 15,547 | |
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 4 | 2 | 5 | 11 |
| 2 | Canada | 2 | 4 | 1 | 7 |
| Totals (2 entries) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 18 | |
The Pan American Games have been hosted by 17 cities in 11 countries. Mexico and Canada have hosted three Pan American Games each, more than any other nation. Among cities, onlyWinnipeg andMexico City hosted the Games twice. The city ofLima,Peru which previously hosted the Games in 2019, will serve as the host city once again in 2027, making this the third city to have hosted the Games twice.
The host city for a Pan American Games is usually between six and seven years ahead of the each edition. The selection process is held in two phases that span a three years period.Since 2024, cities or regions can apply for the Games, following the changes proposed by the International Olympic Committee, respecting Agenda 2020+5.[36][37].The interested parties can present their proposals to the National Olympic Committee of their country, which is up to the latter to accept or reject the proposals,; if more than one city or region from the same country submits a proposal to its NOC, the national committee typically holds an internal selection, since only one bid per NOC can be presented to the PanAm Sports for consideration. Once the deadline for submission of proposals by the NOCs is reached, the first phase (Application) begins with the applicant cities asked to complete a questionnaire regarding several key criteria related to the organization of the Pan American Games.[7] In this form, the applicants must give assurances that they will comply with the Olympic Charter and with any other regulations established by PanAm Sports's Executive Committee.[7] The evaluations of the completed questionnaires are made by a group of experts from PanAm Sports with an overview of each applicant's project and their potential to host the Games. On the basis of this technical evaluation, PASO's Executive Board selects the applicants that will proceed to the candidature stage.[7]
Once the candidate cities are selected, they must submit to PASO a bigger and more detailed presentation of their project as part of a candidature file. Each city is thoroughly analyzed by an evaluation commission. This commission will visit the candidates, interviewing local officials and inspecting prospective venue sites, and submit a report on its findings one month before the PanAm Sports's final decision. During the interview process the bidding city or region must guarantee that it will be able to fund the Games.[7] After the work of the evaluation commission, a list of candidates is presented to the General Session of PanAm Sports, which is assembled in a country that must not have a candidate city in the running. The members of PASO gathered in the Session have the final vote on the host city. Once elected, the host city bid committee (together with the NOC of the respective country) signs a Host City Contract with PanAm Sports, officially becoming a Pan American Games host nation and host city.[7]
As of the 2023 edition, 35 countries and six territories, whoseNational Olympic Committee is recognized by the Pan American Sports Organization, compete at the Pan American Games.[38]
Antigua and Barbuda Argentina
Aruba
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Bermuda
Bolivia Brazil
British Virgin Islands Canada
Cayman Islands Chile Colombia
Costa Rica Cuba
Dominica Dominican Republic
Ecuador
El Salvador
Grenada
Guatemala
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Jamaica Mexico
Nicaragua
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Puerto Rico
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Suriname
Trinidad and Tobago United States
Uruguay Venezuela
Virgin Islands
| Africa |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Americas | PASO –Panam Sports | |
| Asia | ||
| Europe | ||
| Oceania | ||
