Olympic prelude. For many athletes, the Pan American Games became their tickets to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. This has resulted in a high level of competition, according to Lima 2019 spokesperson Carlos Manuel Lazarte. 

“Lima 2019 has a record number of qualifying disciplines for Tokyo 2020. This has appealed to athletes of a higher competitive level, because they have come to Lima to achieve their qualification. Qualification in modern pentathlon is already defined and today, either Brazil or Argentina will qualify for the Olympic Games in handball,” he stated. 

Carlos Manuel Lazarte also highlighted the fact that Peruvian runner Cristhian Pacheco has qualified for the Olympic Games, even setting a new Pan American record for the men's marathon. 

He also congratulated Natalia Cuglievan for her gold medal in water skiing, tricks event. At only 22, this is the second time she has achieved this feat, as she previously picked up the gold medal at Toronto 2015. 

“Now that Peru has set this historical record of four gold medals, we expect more success to keep the trend,” he said. 

It is important to mention that Peru is ranked eighth in the Lima 2019 overall medal tally with four gold, two silver and two bronze medals. The USA leads the table, with a total of 44 medals, 17 of which are gold.

The seventh competition day of the Lima 2019 Pan American Games promises to be full of action, as the most important athletes in the Americas will do their best to position their delegations at the top. Athletes will try to obtain as many gold medals as possible, to leave an indelible mark in the all-time Pan American Games medal table.  

In this regard, Costa Verde will feature the final match of men's and women's beach volleyball competitions, with a series of tough matches. These will start at 10:00 and end at 14:30. 

Likewise, men's and women's finals in 200 m and 500 m canoe sprint will take place at Albufera Medio Mundo –Végueta, from 9:00 to 11:50. 

Water skiing competitions will also come to an end at Laguna Bujama at 10:00. Similarly, one of the most representative strength sports, weightlifting, will conclude at Mariscal Cáceres Coliseum from 12:00 to 19:00. 

The Bowling Center will see the last matches of this indoor sport, in women's and men's single events, starting at 9:00. 

On the other hand, distinction delegations of this continent will continue in their search for the gold medal in different sport disciplines such as handball, boxing, artistic gymnastics and shooting. Finally, the qualification stage of sports like baseball, hockey, softball, squash, surf and tennis will continue amid great expectation from the fans.  

For more information about the schedule and results: https://www.lima2019.pe/resultados 

Water skier Natalia Cuglievan won the fourth gold medal for Peru, becoming the first Peruvian athlete to win a second personal gold medal in the history of the Pan American Games. 

The now two-time Pan American champion repeated her feat from Toronto 2015 after winning the tricks event in the competition held at Laguna de Bujama. 

Cuglievan scored 9910 points, beating American Erika Lang (9720) and Canadian Louise Rini (8820).  

Before the competition, Natalia had claimed to feel “ready”, as she had been training intensively for the last six months. 

“It’s a great honor for me to represent Peru and to make water skiing better known. I did feel a little more pressure because I was competing in my home country, in front of my family and my people. But all the effort I put in was worth it,” stated Natalia. 

Her debut at the Pan American Games was at the age of just 14, at Guadalajara 2011. She managed to reach the fourth place. Toronto 2015 was the occasion to start showing all her class, as she took home the gold medal. Four years later, Natalia won gold again at the Lima 2019 Games.  

“Sports are truly important, and Peru made an effort to organize the Pan American Games,” concluded Natalia.