The 2007 Pan American Games, officially known as the XV Pan American Games, were a major continental multi-sport event that took place in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, from July 13 to 29, 2007. A total of 5,633 athletes from 42 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) competed in 332 events in 34 sports and in 47 disciplines. During the Games, 95 new Pan American records were set; 2,196 medals were awarded; 1,262 doping control tests were performed and about 15,000 volunteers participated in the organization of the event, which was an Olympic qualification for 13

International Federation This is a list of international sports federations, each of which serves as a non-governmental governing body for a given sport and administers its sport at a world level, most often crafting rules, promoting the sport to prospective spectator ...

s (IFs). Rio de Janeiro was awarded the Games over

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_ ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, on August 24, 2002, having won an absolute majority of votes (30–21) from the 51 members of the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) in the first round of voting during the XL PASO General Assembly held in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

. This was the first Games held in Brazil since the 1963 Pan American Games that took place in

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaW ...

. According to the Rio de Janeiro Organizing Committee, the Games called for the implementation of the country's largest organizational and logistic operation ever. __TOC__

Bidding process

The official bid was submitted in August 2001 during the XXXIX Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) General Assembly held in

Santo Domingo , total_type = Total , population_density_km2 = auto , timezone = AST (UTC −4) , area_code_type = Area codes , area_code = 809, 829, 849 , postal_code_type = Postal codes , postal_code = 10100–10699 ( Distrito Nacional) , webs ...

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

. In April 2002, following delivery of Federal, State and City Government and BOC letters confirming country, state, city and Brazilian sport compliance with the applicable Games regulations, PASO announced the approval of Rio de Janeiro’s bid. The Bidding Committee then submitted a detailed bid file for the Games. The document was prepared and developed with the assistance of Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV), which had been commissioned by Rio de Janeiro's City Government. In the running to host the 2007 Pan American Games, Rio de Janeiro faced off with the city of

; which previously beat

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

, and

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

to become the American candidate. According to PASO statute and regulations, the host city was selected by direct voting during the XL PASO General Assembly held in

, on August 24, 2002. The candidate city that received the simple majority of votes from representatives of the 42 member National Olympic Committees (NOCs) would be awarded the right to host the competition. The announcement was made by PASO President Mario Vázquez Raña. Rio de Janeiro received 30 votes against 21 from San Antonio. Marked by a professional strategy that included the showing of city and project videos, Rio de Janeiro's campaign convinced the majority of voters, accounting for a total 51 votes. The 39-member Brazilian delegation erupted into boisterous celebration celebrating the country's highest achievement in terms of sporting event organization.

Medal count

Mascot

The organization of the Rio 2007 Games has chosen the figure of the Sun to represent the event. And, in a decision never taken before, it has defined it as the single mascot of the Pan American and

Parapan American Games The Parapan American Games is an international multi-sport event for athletes with physical disabilities held every four years after every Pan American Games. The first Games were held in 1999 in Mexico City, Mexico. The 2003 Parapan American Ga ...

, such as the Brazilian expression, that the "Sol Brilha para Todos" (The sun shines for everyone), reinforcing thus the principles against prejudice and that, like the sun,

sport Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

is for all. The character reflects the main characteristics of the host city and harmonizes with the graphic work developed for the logo and the visual identity of both Games. The name was chosen through popular voting by Internet, cellular phone messages and public ballot boxes placed around the main Brazilian cities, causing great commotion. Over 1.2 million people participated in the election, and the name Cauê received almost half of the votes. Traditionally used in large sport events, the mascot figure serves the purpose of cheering the event, enforcing the playful aspect of sports and captivating spectators and athletes. The mascot's main choice is to transmit messages of peace, respect to the environment, friendship and brotherhood, which are intrinsic values to the Olympic Movement.

Torch relay

The 2007 Pan American Games torch relay was a 39-day torch run, from June 5 to July 13, 2007, held prior to the games. On June 4, the torch was lit at the torch lighting ceremony in Teotihuacán, Mexico. The flame was then taken by a Brazilian Air Force craft to Santa Cruz Cabrália,

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-larges ...

, where the torch relay began.

Opening ceremony

The Opening Ceremony of the XV Pan American Games took place on July 13, 2007. Approximately 90,000 people packed

's Maracanã Stadium for the occasion. The ceremony included a cast of 7,000 and a multimillion-dollar budget, being produced by

Scott Givens Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Sask ...

. Over 800 people were part of the creative and production teams working on the Opening Ceremony, Team Welcome Ceremonies, Sports Production, the presentation of 2,252 medals, Sports Production, the Closing Ceremony and ParaPan ceremonies. The show began at 05:30 pm (local time, UTC-3) and lasted for two and a half hours. The theme of the show was based on the theme of the Rio 2007 Games: ''Viva Essa Energia'' (Share the Energy) and the oath of the athletes was performed by Brazilian Taekwondo athlete Natália Falavigna. Also, a very abbreviated version of the Olympic Anthem was played. Contrary to plan, the games were not opened by Brazil's head of state, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, but by the head of the

Brazilian Olympic Committee The Brazilian Olympic Committee or BOC ( pt, Comitê Olímpico do Brasil – COB) is the highest authority in Brazilian sport and the governing body of Brazilian Olympic sport. It was officially founded on June 8, 1914, but World War I caus ...

, Carlos Nuzman. Prior to the official opening, Lula had been constantly booed whenever the in-stadium camera showed his image or when his name was mentioned.

Venues

The competitions were carried through in a ray of 25 km, spread for four polar regions in the city. * Marapendi Club – '' Tennis'' * City of Sports Complex – ''

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

Cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from ...

(track), Artistic Gymnastics, Swimming, Synchronised swimming, Roller Skating (Speed and Diving).'' * Outeiro Hill – ''

(Mountain Bike and BMX).'' * Riocentro Complex (IBC/MPC) – '' Badminton,

Boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

, Fencing, Futsal, Rhythmic Gymnastics and Trampoline, Handball,

Judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo") ...

, Weightlifting,

Wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat s ...

, Taekwondo and Table Tennis.'' * City of Rock – ''

Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

and

Softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

.'' * Barra Bowling Center – ''

Bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though ...

.'' * Zico Football Center (CFZ) – ''

Football (soccer) Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

.'' * Miécimo da Silva Complex – ''

, Karate, Roller Skating (Artistics) and Squash.'' * Deodoro Military Club – ''

Equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...

(Dressage, Eventing, Jumping),

Field Hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ...

, Modern Pentathlon, Sport Shooting and Archery.'' *

João Havelange Stadium João is the Portuguese language, Portuguese equivalent of the given name John (given name), John. The diminutive is Joãozinho (disambiguation), Joãozinho and the Feminine (grammar), feminine is Joana. It is widespread in Portuguese-speaking c ...

– ''

Athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

and

.'' * Maracanã Stadium – ''

, Water Polo and

Volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

.'' * Marina da Glória – ''

Sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...

.'' * Flamengo Park – ''

( Marathon and Race Walking) and

(road). '' * Copacabana Arena – '' Swimming Marathon, Triathlon and Beach Volleyball.'' * Rowing Stadium of the Lagoon – '' Canoe flatwater and Rowing.'' * Caiçaras Club – '' Water Ski.'' Main construction work of the 2007 Pan American Games, the João Havelange Olympic Stadium hosted the

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

and football competitions. The stadium is one of the major Games' legacies to the city of Rio de Janeiro, which can since then count on a modern stadium with full capacity to be used for sports and cultural events. The City of Sports Complex counts on modern constructions such as the

Rio Olympic Arena Jeunesse Arena is an indoor multi-purpose arena, located in the region of Barra da Tijuca, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is named for the American cosmetics company Jeunesse Global through a naming rights deal closed in 2017. Before, the spon ...

, where the Games'

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

and artistic gymnastics competitions were held; the Maria Lenk Aquatic Park, venue for the swimming, synchronized swimming and diving competitions; and the Barra Velodrome, where the

track cycling Track cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles. History Track cycling has been around since at least 1870. When track cycling was in its infancy, it ...

and

speed skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skati ...

events took place. Riocentro Convention Center is the largest expositions and fairs center of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

, for the 2007 Games, the complex held temporary facilities for staging several sport disciplines, including in the Parapan American Games. The Miécimo da Silva Sports Complex is the largest sports complex owned by a City Government (City Hall) in

. Several large sports events took place at this venue, such as the basketball exhibition game between the teams of American Magic Johnson and Brazilian Oscar Schmidt, in addition to several matches of the Brazilian Futsal team. The Deodoro Military Club is a traditional Brazilian Army sport facility in Rio de Janeiro, will host the Rio 2007 Games

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ...

, modern pentathlon, sport shooting and archery competitions. The Maracanã Stadium was built for the 1950 FIFA World Cup, the Mario Filho Stadium (internationally known as Maracanã) is one of the most famous stadiums in the world, receiving a great number of Brazilian and foreign tourists annually. The stadium staged the Opening and Closing Ceremonies and football matches, including the finals. The Maracanãzinho Gymnasium is the house of the Rio 2007

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

competitions. The Julio Delamare Water Park is the stage for the water polo tournament in the Games. The Maracanã Sports Complex also includes the Celio de Barros Athletics Stadium, and it is administered by the Rio de Janeiro State Government. Also known as ''Aterro do Flamengo'', the Flamengo Park is the largest leisure area of the city. Besides Marina da Glória, the main venue for the Rio 2007

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...

competitions. During the Games, the marathon (men’s and women’s) arrival points set up at the Flamengo Park, which will also stage the race walking and road cycling competitions.

Sports

For the 2007 Games Futsal was added to the program for the first (and as of 2011 only time) while racquetball and basque pelota were dropped. * Aquatics ** ** ** ** * * * * * * * * Canoeing () ** Canoe sprint (12) *

() **

BMX BMX, an abbreviation for bicycle motocross or bike motocross, is a cycle sport performed on BMX bikes, either in competitive BMX racing or freestyle BMX, or else in general street or off-road recreation. History BMX began during the earl ...

(2) ** Mountain biking (2) **

Road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types o ...

(4) **

Track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

(10) *

() ** Dressage (2) ** Eventing (2) ** Jumping (2) * * * (, ) * * Gymnastics () ** Artistic (14) ** Rhythmic (8) ** Trampolining (2) * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

() **

(2) ** Beach volleyball (2) * * *

() **

Freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * ICD Freestyle, a paintball marker * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott Lab ...

(11) ** Greco-Roman (7)

Participating nations

Broadcasting

* :

Canal 7 Argentina Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow un ...

* : Radio y Television Boliviana * :

Rede Bandeirantes Rede Bandeirantes (, ''Bandeirantes Network''), or simply known as Band (), is a Brazilian free-to-air television network. It began broadcasting on May 13, 1967 on VHF channel 13 in São Paulo. Its founder was businessman João Saad with t ...

, Rede Globo, Rede Record,

BandSports BandSports is a Brazilian cable television network that has its programming based on all sports, launched in 2002 by Grupo Bandeirantes de Comunicação. Sports Programming Athletics * Diamond League * European Athletics Championship Bask ...

, ESPN Brasil, Sportv * : CTV Sports * : Canal 13, TVN * : Canal Capital, Canal 13, Canal TRO, Teleantioquia, Telecafé,

Telecaribe Telecaribe is a regional television network for the Caribbean region of Colombia. History The station was set up in the early 1980s in Valledupar, Colombia and was created by a local entrepreneur named Jose Jorge Dangond. It started as an unl ...

, Teleislas, Telepacífico, Señal Colombia * : Tele Antillas * : Gamavision, Teleamazonas * :

Eurosport Eurosport is a group of pay television networks in Europe and parts of Asia. Owned by Warner Bros. Discovery through its international sports unit, it operates two main channels— Eurosport 1 and Eurosport 2—across most of its territorie ...

* : Telecorporación Salvadoreña * :

ESPN Deportes ESPN Deportes (, ''ESPN Sports'') is an American multinational Spanish-language pay television sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hearst Communications ( ...

, Televisa * : RPC TV-canal 4 TV MAX-Canal 9 * : America TV, Panamericana Television * :

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

* :

Teledoce Teledoce Televisora Color, also known as Canal 12 is a Uruguayan free-to-air television network, located in the capital of Uruguay, Montevideo. It is owned by Grupo Disco. Television transmissions commenced in 1962. History It was the third a ...

* : Meridiano TV

Calendar

References

External links

*
Archive.org copy of site
(official site is a deadlink) *

Result book

{{Authority control Pan American Games Pan American Games, 2007 International sports competitions in Rio de Janeiro (city) P Pan American Pan American Games 2000s in Rio de Janeiro July 2007 sports events in South America

Bidding process

Medal count

Mascot

Torch relay

Opening ceremony

Venues

Sports

Participating nations

Broadcasting

Calendar

See also

References

External links