(ATR) The 2019 Pan American Games are on track to offer more Olympic qualification spots than the previous event in 2015.
The Toronto 2015 Games awarded Olympic qualification in 12 of its 36 sports, but the 18th edition of the games scheduled for Lima, Peru between July 26 and Aug. 11, 2019, is closing in on that number.
Sources from the Lima 2019 Organizing Committee (COPAL) revealed to Around The Rings that to date, 10 disciplines will be using Lima 2019 as a way to book a spot for Tokyo 2020: swimming, equestrian, field hockey, surfing, karate, modern pentathlon, table tennis, shooting, archery and triathlon.
Six other sports could be added to that list. Badminton, handball, skateboarding, baseball/softball, tennis and sailing are in what is called a "confirmation process".
"Yet we cannot say with absolute certainty that the list of these disciplines would be "Olympic" as Panam Sports and the Pan American sports confederations continue assessing each case," Operations Director of COPAL Carlos Manuel Lazarte said to ATR.
Lima 2019 will feature 39 sports, including four of the five sports that have been added to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic program atop the traditional 28 Olympic sports. Baseball/softball, surfing, karate and skateboard are all in but sports climbing was not included in Lima 2019 because It does not comply with the requirements of Panam Sports. In order to join the Panam Sports program, a federation must be recognized in at least 21 of the 41 member countries.
Of the 10 confirmed Olympic qualifiers, some have already revealed details about Olympic quotas while specifics for others are yet to be finalized. In the case of swimming, the Swimming Union of the Americas (UANA) supports the idea of an Olympic qualifier but Lima organizers must still request and receive formalized accreditation from the International Swimming Federation (FINA) before learning which events will be included in Olympic qualifying.
According to a Panam Sports document seen by ATR, "some synchronized swimmers will qualify directly to Tokyo 2020 on the basis of performances in Lima".
In water polo, the champion of the men's and women’s tournaments will both gain entry to Tokyo 2020. Four places are on offer in archery through the men’s and women’s team and individual events.
The winners in men’s and women’s field hockey in Lima will qualify for Tokyo while modern pentathlon will distribute 10 spots, divided equally between men and women.
Equestrian will announce in November their ratings for dressage, eventing and jumping. Shooting will award 15 Olympic spots, one for each event. Table tennis will award classifications to the gold medalists in men’s and women’s singles.
The men’s and women’s champions in triathlon will qualify for Tokyo. Karate and shortboard surfing are both offering four spots, two for both men and women.
An undefined number of sports federations will also utilize the Lima 2019 competition as an avenue to receive points towards world rankings that are often utilized to determine Olympic qualification.
Written by Miguel Hernandez
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