Pan-Am Euphoria

On Friday November 6, 2009 Toronto, Ontario was selected as host city for the upcoming 2015 Pan-American Games. The announcement brought instant euphoria to sporting officials who have longed appealed to the federal government for enhanced sport funding in Southern Ontario.

In the next six years Southern Ontario will witness the construction of a brand new aquatics facility, plus a pair of 50m training pools, an interntional sized indoor velodrome and many other much needed athletic facilities. But will constrcution of these facilities benefit Canada's high perforamance programs leading into - and following the games themselves. History indicates no.

Since 1976 Canada has hosted an Olympic Games (Montreal), two Commonwealth Games (Edmonton in 1978 and Victoria in 1994) , a Pan-American Games (Winnipeg in 1999), a Universaide Games (Edmonton in 1983)and countless world championships - and none of these events have been leveraged to bring Canada's Summer Sports Organizations together. In fact it could be argued that Canada's Summer Olympic System is worse off today than it was in early 80's - despite a plefora of world class events hosted on Canadian soil.

Truthfully, only the 1988 Calgary Games have effectively managed the legacy of a multi-sport Games thereby benefiting Canada's winter Olympic athletes. Some 20 years after the conclusion of the1988 Olympics - all 15 of Canada's winter sport organizations train in a sporting insitute right here in Calgary, Alberta. In Calgary, Canada's winter athletes have access to every imaginable service and resoucre they require to be competitive with the rest of the world. It is for this reason that Canada's winter Olympic athletes are poised to stand atop the podium in Vancouver more often than any other nation in the world.

Meanwhile, Canada's Summer Athletes are envious of their Winter Olympic cousins. They train out of make-shift facilities that lack many of the modern amenities that our winter athletes enjoy. Furthermore, they find themselves scattered across the nation with one group of athletes in Victoria another in Halifax and the remainder in regions in between. It is with little wonder then that our summer athletes aren't as succeful as they could/should be.

Here's hoping that the 2015 Pan-American Games changes all that.....here's hoping.