Leftover infrastructure from the Pan Am Games is now being used to give aspiring athletes from the GTA access to world-class training facilities without having to travel far.
“I think it’s amazing to have a track of our own to just come from class and just train,” said Bismark Boateng, an aspiring track athlete who trains at York University’s new $54-million facility.
“Last year, we had to go to Downsview,” he said.
Before the Games, the federal government contributed $377 million to build and renovate Toronto’s infrastructure to meet the needs of the Pan Am Games.
With the sporting event over, a new world-class aquatic centre and fieldhouse at the University of Toronto Scarborough campus doubles the number of Olympic-standard pools in the city and the Milton Velodrome will mean Canadian cyclists can train at home instead of abroad.
In total 10 new sporting facilities were built in the GTA, which is crucial in ensuring the Canada’s athletic success in the future, said York University’s director of athletics, Jennifer Myers.
“Our athletes at the Olympic and national level have been performing sometimes in spite of not having access to those kinds of infrastructure and facilities and so, developing them is very critical,” she said.
And young athletes say they’re already noticing the benefits of having access to world–class athletics facilities at home.
“Usually the athletes who are serious about going somewhere usually go to NCAA,” said Nour Ghoneim, a York University soccer player. “But when they see facilities like these, I think it’s going to attract more Canadian athletes to stay here instead of moving away to the States.”
With more than 6,000 athletes competing from 41 countries, the Pan Am Games were the largest sporting event Canada has ever hosted.
With a report from Janice Golding
