Karate continues giving us joy. This time, it was the turn of the athlete Isabel Mallory Aco, who reached the bronze medal in Kumite, 68 kg category. The combat was held at the Villa El Salvador Sports Center, where a great number of spectators attended. 

The Peruvian representative took the 39th medal for Peru. It is a historical figure that surpasses all previous participation in this type of international competitions. Isabel Aco participated on the last day of competitions at the Lima 2019 Pan American Games, where she reached the bronze medal in the semifinal. She was defeated by Omaira Molina from Venezuela. 

With this victory, Peru collected 21 bronze medals, 11 gold medals and seven silver medals, making Lima 2019 an unforgettable event for Peru and the athletes.  

Karate added gold medals with Alexandra Grande and the men’s Kata team (Oliver del Castillo, John Trebejo and Carlos Lam), bronze medals with the women’s Kata team (Andrea Almarza, Sol Romaní and Saida Salcedo), Ingrid Aranda and Mariano Wong, both in individual Kata. 

Without a doubt, the constant feature and trademark of the Pan American Games, which come to an end tonight, has been the unconditional support of Peruvian fans and the fans from different countries of the Americas. Their support has been recognized by outstanding athletes of the continental competition.

Kevin Martínez, gold medalist in Peruvian Fronton singles, highlighted the fact that this discipline of Basque pelota made its debut in the Pan American Games and said he was “very happy” to be the ambassador of this 100% Peruvian sport.    

“It’s an honor to represent this Peruvian sport that we’re slowly sharing with the world and to give Peru its tenth gold medal (of the Games),” he said.

Later, he welcomed the presence of the president of Peru, Martín Vizcarra, at the medal ceremony of his competition and revealed that the president is a former fronton player: “we’ve agreed to play a match to pick up fronton again.”

SUPPORT ON ALL COURTS

Karatekas John Trebejo, Carlos Lam and Oliver del Castillo reiterated how much it meant to them to win the gold medal in men’s team kata surrounded by the universal support of the public.

“This can unite us in order to move forward. Sports are a great tool for change. We’re happy and enjoying this celebration. We’ve been working for a long time. Carlos, Oliver and I are such good friends; I knew we could achieve something historic,” confessed John.

Likewise, Tamil Martino, silver medalist in stand up paddle surfing, said that he had never felt so much support and affection from fans in a competition before.

“That was crucial to us doing well as a team. We, as well as the Peruvian surfing community, are proud that we have been included in such an important championship like the Olympic-level Pan American Games. This is the first time that surf is part of a competition of this level and we were able to prove to Peru that Peruvian surf is a first-rate sport,” he said.

INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT

Brazilian Rafaella Silva, world, Olympic and Pan American champion in judo, was pleased to represent her country at Lima 2019 and with how this continental event will contribute to her preparation for the world championship.

Just a few hours before the closing ceremony of the Lima 2019 Pan American Games at the National Stadium, Gian Marco spent time to meet a group of excited fans.

Thanks to a contest promoted by Lima 2019 social media, the lucky fangirls had a warm encounter with the artist. Lima 2019 also awarded them tickets for the Pan American Games closing ceremony, where they will be able to see their idol live.

The singer, who will close the celebration, shared a moment with their fans this Sunday, on a hotel terrace in Miraflores, where the meet & greet took place.

In an unforgettable experience for a group of enthusiastic fans, they were able to make photographs and videos, and have autographs and direct contact with their idol, singer of greatest hits like “Sentirme Vivo” and “Sácala a bailar,” just to name a few.

Milco, the Lima 2019 official mascot could not miss this unforgettable moment and, of course, he greeted each of the lucky fangirls and posed with them for the official photo.

“Today, is not the end of the Pan American Games but the start of Peruvian sport. We hope we have inspired millions of young athletes of the Americas because this is a new start for all of athletes of our continent,” said Alberto Valenzuela, Lima 2019 general manager.

He thanked the almost 7000 athletes that arrive to our country, for being part of our history, in an unprecedented event that united Peruvians and millions of people of the Americas.

Valenzuela said that we have to look forward now, taking care of the legacy left by the Lima 2019 Pan American Games, and taking care of the sport infrastructure that turned our country into the new sport capital of the continent.

He also said that the second legacy we should protect is the social legacy, our athletes, the current and the ones to come in the next years, because they are a new inspiration for sport and the new heroes for our children and grandchildren.

The Lima 2019 General Manager also thanked all the people that came to the Games, because they have inspired a country, a whole new generation of young people and Peruvians that will build the most important legacy and the sport reserve in the years to come.

“I want to deeply thank all media and press on behalf of the Organizing Committee, for being part of this story, for having made history here.” he said.

Committed to the fight against doping in sport, the Pan American Sports Organization (Panam Sports) informed this morning that a new case of doping has been detected, corresponding to the athlete Jean Francisco Pérez Faure, member of the Puerto Rican men’s doubles bowling team.  He tested positive for Chlorthalidone, belonging to the S5 group of diuretics and other masking agents.  

As a result, the Disciplinary Commission of the Lima 2019 Pan American Games has annulled the result of this competition, where Puerto Rico had won the gold medal. 

For this reason, the results are as follows: 
Gold Medal, United States

Silver Medal, Colombia

Bronze Medal, Mexico

The procedures used to take and analyze the samples are being carried out according to the Pan American Games anti-doping rules that were approved by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).  

This is the second case of doping at the Lima 2019 Games after the Dominican baseball player Audrey Joel Pérez tested positive for an anabolic.

If you visit VIDENA these days, you might get confused and start thinking that Lima 2019 has included the operation of remote control cars as one of its sports disciplines. While the discus, hammer, bullet and javelin competitions are taking place, these cars go round and round in the central field of the Athletics Stadium.  

But, these peculiar red cars are not operated by athletes, but by the camera operators of the great international team of Mediapro, the Host Broadcaster responsible for broadcasting all the Games sports competitions, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies. Of course, inside these cars, there are HD cameras instead of people.  

“The car is nothing more than a high-speed horizontal traveling that allows them to reach athletes. In this case, they are operated by two people: one controls the car and the other the head (the camera). Normally, when it is not the high-speed version, someone can operate it all at once,” explained Gustavo Fonseca of Mediapro, coordinator in charge of covering all the Lima 2019 sports disciplines.  

Sports in Screens 

The group Mediapro has its own department of special cameras. Few television production companies research and develop their own technology, which allows them to be more operational. Thus, Mediapro’s display of technology has been important at Lima 2019. About 270 cameras have been used.  

However, from a media perspective, there are particular sports that involve a greater challenge, such as swimming, gymnastics and, above all, athletics.  

“Although we try to ensure that the production challenge of all sports is balanced, I think it is quite obvious that athletics is th king of the Games,” said Fonseca. “Several factors are involved: complexity, popularity, return of audience and, consequently, commercial return of the Right Holders, etc.”  

In other important sports, such as gymnastics –which has already ended– and swimming, nearly 16 cameras were installed. In athletics, there were 24.  

Race Cameras 

Several wireless and mini cameras are located in many places of the Athletics Stadium. And then there are the most important ones:  

OMNICAM SPEED is a high-speed traveling to track athletes in the 100 m race. It has a horizontal traveling with add-on engine to reach the speeds athletes reach, and a stabilizing lens that allows broadcasters to slow down the athletes’ movements. 

“In swimming, for example, we also have another traveling, that is not high speed and has a double head: it features two cameras to track the swimmers' route, obviously with a much lower speed.”  

OMNICAM FOR SKY is an aerial camera. It has a technology similar to that used by fly cams and spider cams. Mediapro has used two at Lima 2019: one in athletics and the other in the ceremonies.  

Furthermore, the classic virtual graphics that we see on the screens is coupled to the cameras. This is widely used in swimming, jumping, and long distance athletics competitions. The camera has a system attached to its tripod that allows to vary the perspective and, consequently, the project virtual graphics in reality, so that jump distance can be seen on TV, and so on.  

Past and Legacy  

“I was not at Toronto 2015, but there are data that show the difference between those Games and Lima 2019: the number of live hours is double. We’ve broadcasted over 1200 hours live, and that is very different from what happened in the last Games,” assured Fonseca.  

In addition, the amount of sports produced live and the distribution to Right Holders is significantly higher.  

“All this historically creates a before and after Lima 2019. What we’ve seen here, in relation to the past, is very different. It had never happened before.”  

Fonseca is also responsible for Mediapro's Local Operatives Training Program, which will leave a great legacy in terms of the expertise acquired by hundreds of Peruvians in sports broadcasting.  

“It’s something that touches my heart. In the program, we trained 300 people thanks to the agreement that we established with the University of Lima and the casting we did to the local people. A hundred people joined our team. They’re working with us every day. It’s the legacy we leave. It’s in our DNA to teach them and then integrate them into our team. Some of them will go with us to the 2019 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Paraguay in November. There will be Peruvian camera operators.” 

Photo Gallery (click here) 

With a record attendance of over 300,000 people in 14 days, Culturaymi, the Lima 2019 cultural program, ended along with the Pan American Games at Parque de la Exposición with colorful parades, spectacular fireworks and the popular band Bareto, as a grand finale. 

Their most popular songs ignited the last night of the Fun Fest stage before thousands of spectators. "Ya se ha muerto mi abuelo," "No juegue con el diablo," "Mujer hilandera" and "Elsa" songs resounded at the auditorium and were sang by a euphoric crowd. However, the climax started with "Cariñito", one of its emblematic themes. 

A couple of minutes before, on the same stage, the theater group Yuyachkani performed “Con-cierto Olvido” and then Maria de Son, a band inspired by “tunantada” of the Valley of Mantaro with a contemporary fusion proposal. 

Culturaymi became the cultural festival during almost two weeks of intense days that showcased culture, entertainment, music on two stages, crafts, gastronomy, art, history and much more. Everything was done in one place, in a large space such as the Parque de la Exposición, and with free access.  

This enormous project uniting sport by promoting values and setting a great precedent in for the delivery of cultural activities in our country, returns on August 24 after the opening ceremony of the Parapan American Games and will end on August 31.  

It had a large number of spectators and the experience was very positive. There are already high expectations for its reopening on next Saturday 24 at the Parque de la Exposición and remember: access is completely free! 

Among the artists that will be part of this new edition of Culturaymi are Dina Páucar, Damaris, Pamela Rodríguez, Frágil, Colectivo Circo Band and Laguna Pai. 

There will also be plays for children and adults, dancing, workshops and parades. 
Milco, the official mascot of the Lima 2019 Pan American and Parapan American Games will also be there. 

Milco can also be found at the official Lima 2019 gifts shop, in various items that are ideal for gifts. 

Culturaymi is not over, it will return on August 24 with many options to promote culture and sport. 

In Bolivia, there are close to 200 racquetball courts and a similar number of young athletes who practice the sport, with a high competition level. However, despite being one of the powers in the continent, Bolivia had yet to accomplish a resounding achievement. Lima 2019 is the beginning of something great for the Bolivian sport, as this is the first Pan American Games gold medal in Bolivia’s history. 

The men’s racquetball team made up of Conrrado Moscoso and brothers Roland and Carlos Keller defeated Colombia in a series that started during the day and finished at night at the Callao Regional Sports Village. In the morning, Moscoso defeated Sebastián Franco 2-0; however, Mario Mercado evened the score by defeating Carlos Keller 2-1. 

The doubles event was the defining match, which was dominated, from start to finish, by Bolivia. The victory with a score of 15-11 and 15-2 brought the athletes to tears and caused them to unleash their suppressed excitement after the defeat, a couple of days ago, in the doubles final where they faced Mexico. 

“I was completely exhausted after a very long day, but happy, because we won the gold medal that we lost in Toronto and in the doubles event here at Lima 2019, too. But our effort was really worth it. Bolivia deserved the gold medal,” pointed out flag bearer Conrrado Moscoso. 

Bolivia has won five medals at the Pan American Games, four of them in racquetball. The gold medal won tonight, joins the silver medal won in men’s doubles and the bronze medals won in singles, as well as the one won yesterday by the women’s team. Felipe Mercado has been the coach of the Bolivian national team since 10 years ago, and he gave some information regarding this phenomenon. 

“In Bolivia, racquetball is a mass sport, from children to adults, although there is a financial limitation to support athletes during an Olympic cycle. This often complicates the growth of the sport, despite having a good development hub in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Sucre and Cochabamba. Either way, every story of self-improvement of these athletes, who have come to Lima 2019, is admirable,” said the coach. 

For the first time in its history, Bolivia climbed to the highest place in the podium. Lima 2019 will be an unforgettable memory for the neighboring country.  

The Head of State highlighted the enthusiasm and commitment of all Peruvians to host these Pan American Games.  

“The most important thing about these Pan American Games is that, from now on, the practice of these sports will be at its highest level. The Lima 2019 legacy is proving that all Peruvians can achieve everything we set our minds on with effort, enthusiasm and commitment."  

This way, the President of Peru Martin Vizcarra Cornejo summarized the successful development of the most important multi-sports event in the Americas. He added that even though the building of sports infrastructure is a remarkable achievement, the real legacy is having strengthened the cooperation among all Peruvians. 

The Head of State arrived at the Villa El Salvador Sports Center at 15:00 and observed each stage that Alexandra Grande went through to get to the Pan American gold medal. Along with Carlos Neuhaus, president of the Lima 2019 Organizing Committee, the Peruvian President cheered like a fan at the crowded Villa El Salvador Sports Center. 

After leaving the place, he said he was proud that Peruvian sport has far exceeded expectations and that these achievements are the result of effort and hard work considering the medium and long term. He also said that Lima 2019 must be an experience that helps Peru to continue along the same path, because “sport is key to human development, we must strengthen this work and make this investment for the benefit of the population.” 

The Peruvian Head of State had a meeting with Chilean president Sebastián Piñera before the medal ceremony. They talked about the Peruvian experience in these Games, as the southern country will host the 2023 Games.   

As for the President of the Lima 2019 Organizing Committee, he stated that Peruvians should be proud to show the world that Peru can do something so magical and marvelous by working together. Carlos Neuhaus also said that these Games should be a milestone in Peruvian sport. 

“We believe the government should continue supporting sports. With these results, the population will understand how important sport is to people’s lives. I want to thank the whole country for their support and for having contributed to Lima 2019 success,” he emphasized. 

In the classical bodybuilding event, held on August 10 at Mariscal Cáceres Coliseum in Chorrillos, a technical mistake in the result system put the preliminary results as the finals results in the Lima 2019 website. 

The incorrect results were removed as soon as the mistake was identified. The results that appear now are the correct ones. Lima 2019 apologizes for any inconvenience this may have caused. 

Gold medal - William Yuri Rodriguez Gonzales [ESA] 
Silver medal - Carlos Alberto Giraldo Barragan [COL] 
Bronze medal - Jonathan Estuar Martinez Catalan [GUA]