Team Canada’s record medal count caps a great success story

The outstanding performance of Canadian athletes has topped off the most successful Pan Am Games ever.

Team Canada won a record 217 medals at the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am Games. Ontario athletes had a strong showing, with 109 medals, and helped Canada finish in the top two at the largest international multi-sport event the country has ever hosted.

The Games were also a success beyond the field of play:

More than one million tickets were sold for the 36 sporting events in 15 municipalities across the Greater Golden Horseshoe. Millions of fans across Ontario and Canada cheered on our athletes as they competed for a spot on the podium;

More than one million people attended celebrations at seven sites, such as PANAMANIA Live at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto, to enjoy a wide array of arts, sport, cultural and culinary programming;

More than 23,000 volunteers welcomed 7,100 athletes and officials from 41 countries and territories, as well as nearly 250,000 visitors from around the world;

More than 85 per cent of spectators said they were satisfied with their transportation experience. GO Transit buses using temporary High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes regularly arrived ahead of schedule, and more than 95 per cent of Games vehicles arrived on or ahead of schedule. Travel times in general-purpose lanes improved as drivers adapted to the introduction of the HOV lanes;

The Games provided an opportunity to showcase Ontario to an international audience and attract tourists, jobs and new business investments. The Games are expected to create 26,000 jobs and boost Ontario’s real GDP by $3.7 billion from 2009 to 2017.

The Games will leave behind a far-reaching legacy that will continue to enrich Ontario for decades. This includes the Athletes’ Village, which will transform into the Canary District, a vibrant and diverse new Toronto neighbourhood. The 25 new and renovated sports facilities — such as the Cisco Milton Pan Am/Parapan Am Velodrome and the CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Aquatics Centre and Field House — will serve as world-class training sites for the community and for future national teams, and will also be available for public use.

From August 7 to 15, Ontario will again host top athletes from the Americas and the Caribbean. About 3,200 athletes and officials from 28 countries and territories will compete in 16 sports at the largest-ever Parapan Am Games.

Supporting the success of the 2015 Pan Am and Parapan Am Games is part of the government’s plan to build Ontario up by investing in people’s talents and skills, making the largest investment in public infrastructure in Ontario’s history, creating a dynamic, innovative environment where business thrives, and building a secure retirement savings plan.

QUICK FACTS
— Of the 719 Pan Am athletes on Team Canada, 289 (40 per cent) were from Ontario.
Team Canada won 78 gold, 69 silver and 70 bronze medals at the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am Games and finished second overall, as compared to 30 gold, 40 silver and 49 bronze and fifth overall at the 2011 Pan Am Games.
— Ontario athletes won 40 gold, 33 silver and 36 bronze medals for Team Canada.
Quest for Gold has provided Ontario athletes and coaches with more than $90 million in support since the program began in 2006. Ontario provided more than $26 million in 2014-15 to promote participation and excellence in sport across Ontario.
— The Pan Am Games are the world’s third-largest international multi-sport Games.
— The Parapan Am Games torch relay will feature two torches — a Parapan first. The torchbearers will carry the flames, starting in Ottawa and Niagara Falls on August 3, to the Opening Ceremony in Toronto on August 7.