By Barry Ellsworth
TRENTON, Ontario
More than 10,000 athletes from 41 countries, including 700 from host country Canada, are gathered in Toronto for the Pan Am Games that officially kick off Friday with opening ceremonies.
The opening included performances by the world-famous Cirque de Soleil with 625 performers and a pyrotechnic show including the CN Tower, the tallest free-standing structure in the Western Hemisphere and the dominant edifice of the Toronto skyline.
While the games have been the subject of some griping – traffic jams, the $2.5 billion estimated price tag, slow ticket sales and empty hotel rooms - Chief Executive Officer Saad Rafi said there are many pluses, too, including 10 new sports venues and an athlete’s village that will become a new downtown neighborhood.
“When you [Pan American Sports Organization] awarded us the bid, you made this transformation possible,” he said as reported by the Toronto Star, Canada’s largest newspaper.
The opening ceremonies featured a sell-out crowd of 45,000 at the Rogers Centre, but as of Thursday, only 800,000 of the 1.4 million tickets for the various events of the Pan and Parapan (handicapped) events were sold. There was no concern on the part of organizers.
“This is absolutely normal,” said organizing committee chairman David Peterson. “What happens in these games: the long build-up, you’re only dealing with promises,” he said. “The critics’ noises are loud until everybody buys into it and says, ‘Isn’t that fun’.”
Security is unprecedented for a Canadian event. Organizers set up an Integrated Security Unit that consulted with police around the world to develop the security plan.
The security price tag is an estimated $239 million and 10 police forces are involved, including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Ontario Provincial Police.
The games run for two weeks and bring together the finest athletes from North and South America and Latin American countries.
While the games are continental, participation in future international competition is on the line, too.
All 15 Parapan events are qualifiers for the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics, while 10 of the 36 Pan Am categories will serve as qualifiers.
“I can see the way these athletes are prepared and ready to take on the Americas,” said Canadian former Olympic cyclist and games Chef de Mission (volunteer leader) Curt Harnett.
The venues are spread across 17 municipalities, from Welland to the west, Oshawa to the east and north to Minden.
International Olympic President Thomas Bach said staging the games with the new venues would position Toronto well for an Olympic bid.
And Peterson used his platform at the Pan Am Games to plug Toronto, now the fourth largest city in North America with a population close to 3 million.
“We are better at things in this city than in most countries in the world,” he said. “Learning to live together, respecting diversity. We are modern. We are developed. We are generous of spirit. We are efficient. We are so lucky here, to live in Toronto, to be Canadians, and let’s share it with the world. This is our time to shine and let’s shine.”
The Pan Am Games end July 26 while the Parapans run Aug. 7- 15.
