Panam Sports


Panam Sports, officially the Pan American Sports Organization, is an international organization which represents the current 41 National Olympic Committees of the American continents.
It is affiliated with the International Olympic Committee and its affiliated bodies, including ANOC, the Association of National Olympic Committees, and serves as the continental association of the American Continents.
The organization's flagship event is the quadrennial Pan American Games, held since 1951. The Parapan American Games were inaugurated in 1999 for disabled athletes and are held alongside the able-bodied Pan American Games. The Pan American Winter Games, for winter sports, were held only once in 1990. The Pan American Sports Festival was inaugurated in 2014 as a developmental event for the region's athletes.

Affiliated organizations

There are four regional entities affiliated with Panam Sports, they are:
The organization's official languages are English and Spanish.

Flag

Just like the International Olympic Committee, Panam Sports has its own flag. In 2017, Panam Sports underwent a complete rebranding of the organization, including changes to its commercial name, brand and flag. The modern design emphasizes the unity of Panam Sports' 41 member nations, displaying the both continents within a seal that features the new commercial name 'Panam Sports' at the top and 'Organization' at the bottom. The Olympic Rings reside below the seal, symbolizing the continental organization's close relationship with the IOC and the Olympic Games. The seal and accompanying rings are centered on the white background of the flag.
The original flag of PASO-ODEPA contained organization's motto "AMÉRICA, ESPÍRITO, SPORT, FRATERNITÉ", each respectively in Spanish, Portuguese, English and French. The original flag also displayed a torch along with the Olympic Rings and five circles with the official colors of the Olympics on a white background. Finally, the words PASO and ODEPA were written to indicate the organization the flag represents.

Member nations

In the following table, the year in which the NOC was recognized by the International Olympic Committee is also given if it is different from the year in which the NOC was created.
NationCodeNational Olympic CommitteePresidentCreated/RecognisedIOC memberSubregion
Antigua and Barbudayes

Presidents

S. No.NameCountryTenure
1.Avery BrundageUnited States

Athlete Commission

In 2011, a new Panam Sports Athlete Commission was formed. Former Canadian rhythmic gymnast and three-time Pan American Games gold medalist Alexandra Orlando was selected the president of the commission. The commission will be made up of seven athletes with two being reserved for non-Olympic sports.
MemberCountrySincePan American Games Participation
Alexandra OrlandoCanada

Debut of countries per Games

Exclusion of indigenous sports

Despite criticisms that Ulama, the Mesoamerican Ballgame and Lacrosse are not included in the program of the Pan American Games, the number of countries practicing the sport is too small for the sports to be added to the program. As of 2023, there are 19 national federations in the Americas affiliated with World Lacrosse with a minimum number of Panam Sports recognition being 14. However, the Iroquois nation is not recognized as a National Olympic Committee by Panam Sports or the IOC. Thus, there are at this time 14 regional member nations of World Lacrosse, enough for the sport to be included in the Pan Am Games as early as 2027 or 2031. Lacrosse is recognized by the Global Association of International Sports Federations and by the International Olympic Committee and will be played in a six-a-side format at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, but the number of National Federations have to grow to sport to be added at the Pan-An Games program. However, this is not the case with ulama, which inhibits its participation in the Pan American Games. It is a possibility that lacrosse will be included in the program of the Games in the future.

Event