Pan American Games 2003

The XIV Pan-American Games were played from August 1st to 17th, 2003 in Santo Domingo ( Dominican Republic ). The successful application started in the mid-1990s when the country had one of the highest growth rates in Latin America .

All 42 member associations of the PSO took part in the games. 6,748 athletes and a further 2,425 trainers and officials were registered. Most of the athletes sent the USA with 713 participants, fewest Saint Lucia with six participants.

sports

Competitions in 37 sports were held during the Pan-American Games in Santo Domingo.

Athletics (24/23) ( Results ) Badminton (2/2/1) ( Results ) Basketball (1/1) Handball (1/1) Baseball (1/0) Bowling (2/2) Boxing (11/0) ( Results ) Canoe (9/3) Cycling : BMX (1/1) Mountain bike (1/1) Track cycling (7/3) Cycling race (2/2) Diving (4/4) Equestrian sport Dressage (0/0/2) Eventing (0/0/2) Show jumping (0/0/2) Fencing (5/5) Water skiing (4/3) Football (1/1) ( Results ) Futsal (1/0) do gymnastics Apparatus gymnastics (8/6) Rhythmic gymnastics (0/8) Trampoline (1/1)

Weightlifting (8/7) Hockey (1/1) Judo (7/7) Karate (6/3) Wrestling Greco-Roman style wrestling (7/0) Freestyle wrestling (7/0) Women's Wrestling (0/4) Synchronized swimming (0/2) Swimming (17/17) Figure skating (1/1) Inline speed skating (2/2) Modern Pentathlon (1/1) Rowing (8/5) Softball (0/1) Squash (2/2) ( results ) Taekwondo (4/4) Tennis (2/2) Table tennis (2/2) Archery (2/2) Shooting Sports (9/6) Triathlon (1/1) ( Results ) Sailing (2/2/5) Volleyball (1/1) Beach volleyball (1/1) Water polo (1/1)

Opening ceremony

The Games opened in the new Olympic Stadium in front of 18,000 spectators. Some 10,000 performers performed a program, some of whom dressed in costumes that ranged from skeleton to men in tuxedoes and top hats typical of the Dominican Republic Carnival.

Local baseball stars Juan Marichal and Pedro Martínez were involved in the ceremony. They completed the last round of the torch. Together with Luis Pujols , the nephew of the coach of the same name for the San Francisco Giants , who was dressed in a Dominican baseball jersey, they swung a bat against a baseball that sat at the tip of the mini-flame that lit the bowl of flame.

The ceremony was also attended by the President of the Dominican Republic, Hipólito Mejía , the President of the Pan American Sports Federation, Mario Vázquez Raña , and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg .

Budget and sports venues

The Dominican Republic spent at least $ 175 million on the seventeen day sporting event. Two Olympic villages were built and workers were forced to work on it until the opening ceremony due to construction delays, power outages and questionable sports facilities. Ultimately, the Dominican Republic renovated existing sports facilities and built new ones.

Although there were some logistical incidents (one team was unable to shower in the Olympic Village due to lack of water, other teams lacked tennis balls or towels), the US team boss Roland Betts commented: “At times it was a big fight, but we were very excited and proud when we saw the sports venues. I believe that these sports venues were just as good or better than any others that have been created for the Pan-American Games so far. ”(" At times it has been a great struggle, but we are very excited and proud to see the venues. I believe these venues are as good as or better than any that have been created for the Pan American Games. ") Other participants agreed that logistical and construction problems decreased significantly during the Games.

Controversy and local reactions

Numerous demonstrations were held to draw attention to austerity measures, including import taxes and spending cuts and neglect of impoverished regions. During the Games, protests were banned outside the city. However, the Dominicans welcomed the games with pride and warmth, especially when local stars stood out like Félix Sánchez , who won the gold medal in the 400 meter hurdles and broke the Pan-American record.

While praising the world-class sports venues, critics lamented the high cost overruns, the generous rewards of the organizers, and concerns about the Dominican Republic's ability to maintain the sports venues after the Games.

Medal table

The host is highlighted .

Medal table
#	Participating nation	gold	silver	bronze	Total
1	United States	117	80	73	270
2	Cuba	72	41	39	152
3	Canada	29	57	42	128
4th	Brazil	29	40	54	123
5	Mexico	20th	27	32	79
6th	Venezuela	16	21st	27	64
7th	Argentina	16	20th	27	63
8th	Colombia	11	8th	24	43
9	Dominican Republic	10	12	19th	41
10	Jamaica	5	2	6th	13
11	Puerto Rico	3	4th	9	16
12	Ecuador	3	1	5	9
13	Chile	2	10	10	22nd
14th	Trinidad and Tobago	2	4th	1	7th
15th	Uruguay	2	1	5	8th
16	Peru	1	1	8th	10
17th	Suriname	1	0	0	1
18th	Guatemala	0	3	9	12
19th	El Salvador	0	2	2	4th
20th	Bahamas	0	2	0	2
21st	Haiti	0	1	2	3
23	Grenada	0	1	1	2
	Guyana	0	1	1	2
24	Cayman Islands	0	1	0	1
	Bermuda	0	1	0	1
26th	Bolivia	0	0	2	2
	Panama	0	0	2	2
28	Netherlands Antilles	0	0	1	1
	Barbados	0	0	1	1
	Costa Rica	0	0	1	1
	Honduras	0	0	1	1
	St. Lucia	0	0	1	1

Web links

• Map of the Olympic Park (English)
• Map of the Eastern sports facilities (English)
• XIV Jogos Pan-Americanos - Santo Domingo 2003 - República Dominicana in Quadro De Medalhas (Portuguese)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Games Lift Spirits in Santo Domingo (English).
2. ↑ 41 Countries and 6,748 Athletes Pre-Registered in Pan Am 2003 ( Memento of the original dated November 6, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
3. ↑ The most costly Pan Am Games ever ( Memento of the original from October 31, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.