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1979 Pan American Games
8th edition of the Pan American Games
8th edition of the Pan American Games
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | VIII Pan American Games |
| logo | 1979 Pan American Games logo.svg |
| size | 150 |
| host | San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| nations | 34 |
| athletes | 3,700 |
| events | 250 in 24 sports |
| opening | July 1 |
| closing | July 15 |
| opened_by | Governor Carlos Romero Barceló |
| torch_label | Cauldron lighter |
| torch_lighter | Cynthia Guadalupe |
| stadium | Hiram Bithorn Stadium |
| previous | [1975 Mexico City](1975-pan-american-games) |
| next | [1983 Caracas](1983-pan-american-games) |
The 1979 Pan American Games, officially the VIII Pan American Games () and commonly known as San Juan 1979, were a multi-sport event governed by the Panam Sports Organization (PASO), and were held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, from July 1 to July 15, 1979. Volleyball and some baseball matches were held in Caguas, Puerto Rico. The 1980 documentary film A Step Away showcased a number of athletes competing in the Games.
Bidding process
Main article: Bids for the 1979 Pan American Games
On May 31, 1973, San Juan was the only candidate city to be a finalist to host the games and thus, San Juan was then selected to host the VIII Pan American Games by PASO at its general assembly in Santiago, Chile.
Organization
The use of the Puerto Rican flag and anthem over those of the United States became a point of contention between the COPUR and the administration. As mayor of San Juan, then-Governor Carlos Romero Barceló had been involved in the organization process, but as soon as he took office demanded that the flag of Puerto Rico could only be used if accompanied by that of the United States and that both anthems were to be played. Pushback came from sports leaders led by Germán Rieckehoff, who noted that it was against IOC rules, while civilian groups backed their stance. The Asociación de Atletas y Deportistas de Puerto Rico emerged as an educational tool against the administration. Romero hosted the opening ceremony and coordinated for both anthems to be played, being jeered himself and witnessing the booing of the American anthem in what became known as "La Pitada Olímpica". In 1980 a documentary titled A Step Away covered the organization of the event.
The Games
Sports
Medal count
Main article: 1979 Pan American Games medal table
Please DO NOT bold highest medal counts. The table is sortable so bolding is redundant and unnecessary. Thank you.
--
;Note The medal count for Canada is disputed.
Mascot
The 1979 Games were the first one to feature a mascot, which was a running frog holding a torch named Coqui.
References
Footnotes Bibliography
References
- Boswell, Thomas. (July 11, 1979). "Cuba Nine In a Class By Itself". [[The Washington Post]].
- Krastev, Todor. "Men Volleyball Panamerican Games 1979 Caguas (PUR) - 02-13.07 Winner Cuba".
- (July 4, 2015). "Belle Époque: San Juan 1979".
- (June 30, 2009). "Los VIII Juegos Panamericanos de San Juan son un evento que no se olvida".
- (June 1, 1973). "Puerto Rico hará Panamericanos". El Tiempo.
- {{Harvnb. Sotomayor. 2016
- {{Harvnb. Sotomayor. 2016
- {{Harvnb. García. 2014
- "VIII Pan American Games - San Juan (Puerto Rico) 1979".
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
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