Canadian Brian Yang had an outstanding performance against Guatemalan Kevin Cordon and won the singles gold medal at the Peru International 2019 Badminton Tournament, which was held in the VIDENA Sports Center 3, a stage built by Lima 2019 for the Pan American and Parapan American Games that will start in 34 days.

Yang beat the tournament’s first favorite in a match lasting one hour and one minute, with match scores of 15-21, 21-13 and 21-12. This was considered a quality insight of what we will see during the Games, which will also take place in this stage.

In women’s, Indonesian Ghaida Nurul Ghaniyu took the crown. She beat Cuban Taymara Oropeza in the singles final by a double 21-14.

Peru closed the tournament with two bronze medals, both in the doubles matches. In women’s, the pair formed by Dánica Nishimura and Daniela Masías finished third, as well as the pair formed by Bruno Barrueto and Diego Subauste.

GUATEMALA BY TWO

Guatemala’s badminton is at its peak and it was proved by the pairs formed by Ruibén Castellanos and Aníbal Marroquín, who won in men’s, and Diana Corleto and Nikte Sotomayor, who won in women’s.

The fifth gold medal, which offered USD 10 000 in prizes, was won by the American pair formed by Howard Shu and Paula Lynn Obanana in mixed doubles.

Villa María del Triunfo Sports Center will witness the performance of the best softball players of the Americas. In fact, Argentina arrival as the new World champion after winning in the Czech Republic, will be the most important event of this discipline in the Lima 2019 Pan American Games.

The Argentinian team surprised the world by defeating Japan 3-2 in overtime, in a sport usually dominated by English speaking countries. On their road to the title, they defeated former world champions New Zealand, United Sates and Canada. The team´s top scorer was Alan Peker with 12 runs. Other MVPs were Ladislao Malarczuk, Mariano Montero and Manuel Godoy.

Argentina will arrive to Lima 2019 to steal the title won by Canada in Toronto 2015, where the Latin American team was left with the third place. Their path to the glory includes a fourth place in the 2013 World Cup held in Auckland, as well as the bronze medal in the 2003 Santo Domingo Pan American Games.

The sport is governed by the World Baseball and Softball Confederation (WBSC) regulations. The game consists of seven innings where each team alternates batting and fielding. Finally, the team that scores the most runs wins. To watch these matches, you can buy your tickets atwww.lima2019.pe/tickets.

SOFTBALL AT LIMA 2019

Six teams will compete both in men's and women's categories at the Pan American Games. Men’s competitions will take place from July 25 to August 1. Women’s events will be held from August 3 to 10. The women´s Peruvian team will debut against Venezuela on August 4 (16:00). Then, they will go against Mexico, Puerto Rico, Canada and the United States in the first stage.

Meanwhile, the men´s national team will debut against the current Pan American runner-up, Venezuela. Then they will face Mexico, Cuba, current world champion Argentina and the United States. The first match will take place on July 25 against Cuba (16:00).

Softball competitions will be held in three rounds for seven days. The first stage will have a round-robin format and the top four teams will advance to the semifinals. In these matches, the first place will face the second and the third against the fourth. The winner of the first group will advance to the Grand Final.

Meanwhile, the loser of the first semifinal will face the winner of the second group, in a stage called "final". The winner of this match will advance to the Grand Final and compete for the gold medal.

The Peru-Italia 7095 school is located just a few blocks away from the Villa El Salvador Sports Center. The students of this school already know that the Pan American and Parapan American sports competitions will take place in this new facility on July 26 and that is why they are ready for the Lima 2019 Games.

“Our students are very excited and we are carrying out several activities such as story-writing, led by the students. They’ve realized that the Lima 2019 Games have made a change in their district and they’re fascinated,” said Maria Isabel Sulca, a teacher at the school.

These activities help the children discover new sports such as “swimming or cycling, because there’s a difference between learning about a sport, and feeling motivated and practicing it,” noted the teacher.

During this visit, students had the opportunity to meet Milco, the official mascot of the Games, and participate in the socio-cultural program prepared by Lima 2019 to promote Olympic and Paralympic values through sports.

“This is a very interesting and educational activity, and it successfully passed the messages along to the students, because an athlete is disciplined, respectful and punctual; that is, they have many values that will be useful throughout their lives. Therefore, sports are closely related to values, and that’s what we need to encourage,” pointed out James Meza, school principal.  

Thirty-one days away from the Pan American Games, motivation starts to play an important role for students who play football, handball and volleyball, as well as practice athletics and gymnastics. 

“We are very motivated because, first, Lima is hosting and, second, because the Pan American Village and many sports are nearby. We feel very lucky, because we will be able to see well-known athletes, as well as learn about countless sports that can be very useful for their personal and social development,” concluded the principal.

The Villa El Salvador Sports Center will house gymnastics, which will take place from July 27 to August 5, and karate, from August 9 to 11.

Photo Gallery (click here)

The United States, one of the great powers of world athletics, confirmed its official list for Lima 2019 and included one of the most brilliant sprinters in history. The Athens 2004 100-meter Olympic champion will compete in the 4x100 m relay to challenge Brazil, current world champion. So, it will definitely be quite a show at the Athletics Stadium in VIDENA.

Gatlin is the fifth fastest man in history, only behind other legends like Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake and Asafa Powell, and his fellow countryman Tyson Gay. Additionally, he is the current 100-meter world champion at the World Championships London 2017 and two-time winner of the 4x100 m relay at the 2015 and 2017 World Championships.

The US team also includes Cravon Gillespie (placed fourth in the 100-meter world ranking). Michael Rodgers (placed twelfth in the 100-meter world ranking) and Donovan Brazier (recent 800-meter winner at the Diamond League in Rome) will also compete at Lima 2019.

In women’s, Sharika Nelvis (100-meter hurdles winner at the Diamond League), Cassandra Tate (400-meter steeplechase), Kara Winger (javelin runner-up at Toronto 2015 Pan American Games) stand out.

OLYMPIC-LEVEL TRACK

A red level-1 nine-lane athletics track was installed for the Pan American and Parapan American Games competitions. The quality standards are similar to those used in the London 2012 Olympic Games and will also be used in Paris 2020. Natural grass has been laid in the center to carry out the javelin, discus and hammer throw events.

The athletics track has been certified by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), having undergone laboratory and delimitation tests. The venue may now host first-class competitions such as the IAAF World U20 Championship in 2022, an event Peru will bid for.

ATHLETICS AT LIMA 2019

Track and field athletics at the Pan American Games is scheduled to take place from August 6 to 10 at the Athletics Stadium in VIDENA. The race walk event will take place on August 4 and 11 and marathon will take place on an outdoor course on July 27, that will start at Parque Kennedy in Miraflores.

A total of 740 of the best athletes from the Americas will be divided into 24 competitions for women and men. There will be 20 finals in track and field per gender, while there will be three road events (marathon, and 20- and 50-km race walk), as well as decathlon for men and heptathlon for women.