75 years Promoting, developing and uniting Sports in the Americas
8 August the Pan American Sports Organization celebrates exactly 75 years since its creation and official recognition by the International Olympic Committee.
On this day 75 years ago, a group of visionary sports leaders met to create a a non-profit organization that would bring together the majority of the National Olympic Committees of the continent and watch over the interests of sports in the region as well as create a world-class sporting event to showcase the best athletes of the Americas.
Thus, three years after its creation in 1951, the first Pan American Games in history were held in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The first Pan American Games featured 2,513 athletes from 21 countries led by the Host Nation of Argentina at the top of the medal table. Then it was Mexico City’s turn to host the games in 1955, followed by Chicago 1959 and Sao Paulo 1963, with the continent’s largest cities lining up to host the most important sporting event in the Americas as it continued to grow.
This multi-sport event blossomed and has become the world’s most important multisport Games behind the Olympic Games. In less than half a century, participating countries, sports and the number of athletes doubled.
In total, the Organization has been led by nine Presidents. The first of these was Avery Brundage from the United States. Mario Vasquez Raña of Mexico has the distinction of longest term in office with more than 40 years at the helm. Mexico’s Jesus Clark Flores is the only one to have served two different terms as President. The Organization has been led by three been interim Presidents in Sylvio Magalhaes from Brazil, Ivar Sisniega from Mexico and Julio Maglione from Uruguay, with the latter being the predecessor of the current President of the Organization, Neven Ilic Alvarez from Chile.
One of its main objectives, which have been successfully met during these 75 years of history, has been to spread Olympism in America as defined in the Olympic Charter. The Organization works closely with the IOC, ANOC, the International Sports Federations, the Pan American Sports Confederations and other Continental Associations of the NOCs to ensure this goal is met.
“This anniversary fills us with pride. There are 75 years of work, effort and passion of many people over time: all the former Presidents, the members of the Executive Committees, the NOC leaders, the athletes, the coaches and staff of our Organization. I want to thank all of them from the bottom of my heart for everything they have done to make this Organization what it is today. My congratulations to all of them, and I urge all of us who currently belong to Panam Sports to continue this legacy that our predecessors have left us and to work hard for our sport and our athletes in the Americas,” said Panam Sports President Neven Ilic.
Panam Sports has also worked hard throughout the continent, focusing on contributing to the education of youth through sports in the spirit of better understanding, friendship, solidarity and respect for the environment, thereby contributing to the development of a more peaceful and harmonious world.
Helping and guiding its 41 Member countries and their athletes is also of the utmost importance, offering two important sporting events every four years including the Pan American Games and the Junior Pan American Games.
Seventy-five years have passed since the birth of this great Organization. In total, 18 Pan American Games have been held, 14 countries have hosted this sports festival and thousands of athletes from all over the Americas have benefited from the incredible support, scholarships and training programs that it has organized over the years.
Some of the greatest athletes in the history of the world have been the stars of past Pan American Games, including: Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis, Javier Sotomayor, Shannon Miller, Michael Jordan, Thiago Pereira, Luciana Aymar, Donovan Bailey, Shelly Ann Fraser Pryce and Mijain Lopez, among many others who have inspired millions throughout our 75-year history.
Today, Panam Sports has an incredibly bright future, with new projects, significant economic stability and worldwide recognition that makes it possible to dream big. The entire Pan American family is preparing for the 19th version of the Pan American Games that will be held for the first time in Santiago, Chile this October and November.
Santiago 2023 promises to be an event that promises to break all records, with more than 6,900 athletes, more than 1,900 hours of live broadcast and more Olympic qualifiers than ever before with 31 sports offering passage to Paris 2024.
