2015 Pan American Games Under Budget by $38 Million

PAN AM LEGACY FACILITIES ALL FUNCTIONING WELL

ENDOWED LEGACY FUND OF OVER $60 MILLION TO FINANCE FACILITIES FOR 20 YEARS

TORONTO, June 27, 2019 /CNW/ - On the cusp of the 2019 Games, which begin on July 24th in Lima, Peru, the Toronto Organizing Committee for the 2015 Pan American and Parapan American Games is in the final stages of winding up (except for a dispute between the federal and provincial governments over the allocation of certain tax revenues).

Hon. David Peterson, Chair of the 2015 Organizing Committee, is very happy to report on the final outcome of the Toronto 2015 Games. The majority of experts say that these were the finest games ever held, giving the credit to over 23,000 dedicated, enthusiastic volunteers who participated, along with a warm welcome by hundreds of thousands of Torontonians, which made the Toronto Games absolutely unique.

Mr. Peterson said, "I'm happy to report that the Games came in under budget by $38 million and have left a remarkable legacy for the people of Ontario. Not only is there a new village, which led to the major development of a new community in the West Don Lands, but there is a new stadium in Hamilton, a new Velodrome and community centre in Milton, world class pools and a high performance centre in Scarborough, and a recreation centre and pool in Markham. There have also been substantial upgrades to a number of existing facilities, including the track at York University, the kayak course in Welland and the rowing centre in St. Catherines."

Included in the budget is a legacy fund of over $60 million created to endow and support the maintenance of these facilities for the next 20 years.

"I do believe that the success of the Games was in large measure due to the excellent leadership of the CEO, Mr. Saad Rafi, the CFO, Ms. Barbara Anderson, and the first class team they assembled to put the games together. I would like to thank the Founding Chairman, Roger Garland, and the Founding CEO, Ian Troop, who did excellent work to organize the Games in the beginning."

"The Games went on without a hitch. They were warmly embraced by the people of Ontario, who, along with people from the United States, South America, Central America and the Caribbean, bought over 1.2 million tickets."

"I would also like to very much thank the board of directors who, as volunteers, put in an enormous amount of effort. They are Victoria Winter, Hillary Marshall, Joe Halstead, Victor Garcia, Chris Rudge, Gaetan Tardif, Doug Hamilton, Walter Sieber, Michael Chambers, Chris Overholt, and Janice Thomson."

"It was a totally co-operative effort amongst the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Province of Ontario, the Government of Canada, the City of Toronto, the Canadian Olympic Committee, Canadian Paralympic Committee, the Pan American and Parapan American Games Organizing Committee, and a number of other communities. It was a model of inter-governmental cooperation."

"I think the success of these Games bodes very well for Canada's efforts to host any games in the future," said Mr. Peterson. "Not only did the Games provide great benefit to many of our young athletes, it created increased economic activity in Toronto, built a sustainable legacy, and brought many new friends to Canada from around the world."

The Pan American and Parapan American Games are the second largest gathering of athletes in the world, and in 2015, hosted over 10,000 athletes and officials from 42 countries in Toronto.

SOURCE The Honourable David Peterson, Chairman of the Toronto Organizing Committee for the 2015 Pan American and Parapan American Games