Toronto Wins 2015 Pan American Games |
City to Welcome 10,000 Athletes from 42 Countries, 250,000 Visitors
GUADALAJARA, Mexico, Nov. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- The City of Toronto, Canada
has been chosen to host the 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games. The decision
was made today by the Pan American Sport Organization (PASO) in
Guadalajara, Mexico. "We are thrilled," said Toronto 2015 Bid Chair, the
Hon. David Peterson.
"We would like to thank PASO and in particular, PASO President, Mario
Vasquez Rana for having confidence in us and allowing us this great honor.
We will work hard to stage the best Pan Am Games ever."
The Pan American Games are among the premium amateur athletic
competitions in the world. Toronto 2015 is expected to attract 10,000
participants and 250,000 visitors from the 42 participating countries in
North, South and Central America and the Caribbean.
"We look forward to welcoming the PASO family and athletes from across
the Americas and Caribbean to Toronto in 2015," said Ontario Premier Dalton
McGuinty. "In fact, we hope they'll stay a few weeks to enjoy a province
that offers a non-stop summer of fun and excitement."
"Canada is excited to be chosen to host the Americas in 2015. Canada
has a successful history of hosting major international sport events, and
we will host a world-class event," said the Honorable Gary Lunn, Minister
of State (Sport). "Hosting the 2015 Games will bring people from across the
Americas to celebrate their passion for sport."
Situated on the Great Lakes in the heart of North America, Toronto is
Canada's largest city and capital of Ontario, Canada's largest province.
More than 200 million people live within a three-hour flight or one-day
drive of the city, with 30 direct flights to PASO countries on 15 airlines.
"I'm pleased that we will be able to host everyone to Toronto in 2015
and to make them feel welcome," said Toronto Mayor David Miller.
"Torontonians speak more than 140 languages and dialects and we will make
every athlete and visitor feel at home. Those who have never been to
Toronto will discover how much our city has to offer. We have cultural
institutions designed by celebrated architects, world-class theatre, a
beautiful waterfront, and thousands of acres of parkland and green space."
Toronto has been recognized internationally for its superb quality of
life. The Economist magazine ranked the city of soaring skyscrapers and
vibrant cosmopolitan neighborhoods as the fifth "most livable" city in the
world. The 215-city Mercer survey cited Toronto the safest city in the
Western
Hemisphere.
Toronto was chosen as host site over competitors Bogota, Colombia and
Lima, Peru. The winning city's $1.4-billion (CAD) plan is built around a
core of existing and proven world-class facilities used for professional
sports, six new athletic venues and a well-designed, sustainable athlete's
village on Toronto's waterfront. New venues include a stadium for
athletics, indoor velodrome, Canadian Sports Institute facility and
Aquatics Centre, as well as two additional 50-meter pools.
"For us, the Games' legacy of new competition and training facilities
for Ontario's and indeed Canada's athletes is most important," said Michael
Chambers, President of the Canadian Olympic Committee which formally
submitted the bid. "They will provide much needed new and improved training
and competition opportunities for high-performance athletes in and around
the Toronto area, and provide valuable community resources for promoting
physical fitness and health, especially among our youth."
The Pan Am Games are a major international multi-sport event, held
every four years for athletes of the 42 PASO member nations. The Pan
American Games consists of all Summer Olympic sports, plus other
non-Olympic events, and serve as an Olympic-qualifier for a number of
participating sports. The Toronto 2015 Pan American Games will take place
July 10-26 and the Parapan American Games August 7-14. The last edition of
the games was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in July 2007 and the next is
for Guadalajara, Mexico in October 2011.
SOURCE Toronto 2015 Pan American Games Bid
back to topCONTACT:
Liz Borowiec of Toronto 2015 Pan American
Games Bid, +1-416-326-4982
