''A Step Away'' is an Official Olympic Film, a documentary filmed during the VIIIth

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

held in

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, from July 1 to July 15, 1979. It was produced and directed by Roberto Ponce and co-directed by

Marcos Zurinaga Marcos Zurinaga is a Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican film director, screenwriter and cinematographer. Biography His late mother was UPR professor Rosa Zurinaga. He studied at the UPR Elementary School, University High School (UHS) and obtained his B. ...

. The English language narrator was

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

; Carlos Montalban narrated the Spanish version. The film was remastered in 2010.

Synopsis

Documentary focus on the performance of various elite athletes during the Pan American Games held in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Athletes showcased in the documentary include US team swimmer of Puerto Rican origin

Jesse Vassallo Jesús David "Jesse" Vassallo Anadón (born August 9, 1961) is a former competition swimmer and world record-holder in the 200 and 400 individual medley, who participated in the 1984 Summer Olympics for the United States. In 1997, he became the ...

; legendary

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete

Alberto Juantorena Alberto Juantorena (born 3 December 1950) is a Cuban former runner. He is the only athlete to win both the 400 and 800 m Olympic titles, which he achieved in 1976. He was ranked as the world's best runner in the 400 m in 1974 and 1976–19 ...

; Mexican diver Carlos Girón; American diver,

Greg Louganis Gregory Efthimios Louganis (; born January 29, 1960) is an American Olympic Diving (sport), diver who won gold medals at the 1984 Summer Olympics, 1984 and 1988 Summer Olympics on the springboard and platform. He is the only man and the second ...

; and the

Puerto Rico national basketball team The Puerto Rico national basketball team () represents Puerto Rico in men's international basketball competitions, it is governed by the Puerto Rican Basketball Federation (), The team represents both FIBA and FIBA Americas. Since joining FIB ...

, among others. Puerto Rican Basketball player Roberto Valderas sang the team's rap anthem in the film. At the end of the movie, these athletes expressed their hopes of being "a step away" from the 1980

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

; however, these hopes were shattered by the political crisis and the eventual USA-led boycott of the

held in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

in 1980.

External links

* 1980 films Puerto Rican documentary films Documentary films about the Olympics 1979 Pan American Games Canadian documentary films American sports documentary films 1980 documentary films Films about the 1980 Summer Olympics Spanish-language Canadian films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films 1980s Canadian films English-language documentary films {{sport-documentary-film-stub es:Juegos Panamericanos de 1979#A Step Away