CARLOS NEUHAUS: “THE MEDALS FROM OUR ATHLETES ARE THE BEST REWARD”

The President of the Lima 2019 Organizing Committee, Carlos Neuhaus, and the athletes Andrea Almarza, Saida Salcedo and Kevin Martínez were awarded by the Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola.   

In a short speech to the athletes, Neuhaus stated he was “very proud of all of you who represented Peru and also of the volunteers, whose work has been extraordinary.”  

“Seeing each one of you giving your best for Peru and then on the podium celebrating your achievements is something I won’t forget. The best reward we’ve ever had was watching your photos biting the medal and holding the cuchimilco in your hands,” he added.   

He also mentioned that the outcome of the Pan American Games “has been a total success. All the population has played, they have respected the ‘Pan American lane’. It is something that has touched everyone and made us proud to be Peruvians.”  

“This has been accomplished thanks to a team that was formed and started to take shape, and the results were given, although there are always anecdotes. For example, one day at 05:00 I was told that 100 drivers had not showed up. By 07:00, everything was working fine, but it was two hours of great anguish. And that would not have been possible without the support of the Air Force and the Army. Thanks to that, all the buses went out to work and it did not affect the development of the Games,” he concluded.  

At the ceremony were also present the Mayor of Lima, Jorge Muñoz; the founder and President of the Fundación Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola, Raúl Diez Canseco; the President of the Peruvian Sports Institute, Sebastián Suito; the Secretary General of the Peruvian Olympic Committee, Carlos Manuel Lazarte; as well as Iván Dibós, member of the International Olympic Committee.