1979 Pan American Games

VIII Pan American Games

Host	San Juan, Puerto Rico
Events	250 in 24 sports
Main venue	Hiram Bithorn Stadium

The 1979 Pan American Games (Spanish: Juegos Panamericanos de 1979), officially the VIII Pan American Games were a multi-sport event governed by the Panam Sports Organization, and were held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, from July 1 to July 15, 1979. The 1980 documentary film A Step Away showcased a number of athletes competing in the Games.

Bidding process

Main article: Bids for the 1979 Pan American Games

On May 31, 1973, San Juan was the only candidate city to host the games and was selected to host the VIII Pan American Games by PASO at its general assembly in Santiago, Chile.

The Games

Sports

•  Archery ()
•  Athletics ()
•  Baseball ()
•  Basketball ()
•  Boxing ()
•  Cycling ()
•  Diving ()
•  Equestrian ()
•  Fencing ()
•  Field hockey ()
•  Football ()
•  Gymnastics ()
•  Judo ()
•  Roller sports ()
•  Rowing ()
•  Sailing ()
•  Shooting ()
•  Softball ()
•  Swimming ()
•  Synchronized swimming ()
•  Table tennis ()
•  Tennis ()
•  Volleyball ()
•  Weightlifting ()
•  Wrestling ()

Medal count

For a more comprehensive list, see 1979 Pan American Games medal table.

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	United States	126	95	45	266
2	Cuba	64	47	34	145
3	Canada	24	43	71	138
4	Argentina	12	7	17	36
5	Brazil	9	13	17	39
Totals (5 entries)		235	205	184	624

Note

^ The medal count for Canada is disputed.

Mascot

Coqui, the first Pan American Games mascot

The 1979 Games were the first one to feature a mascot, which was a running frog holding a torch named Coqui.

External links

• Memoria VIII Juegos Panamericanos on PanamSports.org