Pan American Games baseball will open with Mexico vs. Chile

Pan American Games baseball will open with Mexico vs. Chile, marking the start of the competition where the host hopes to surprise.

The match will precede the opening ceremony on Friday, October 20, at the National Stadium.

In Pan American Games baseball, the Mexican team comes to the event with the core of players who won the gold medal in the previous Central American and Caribbean Games in San Salvador in 2023.

Meanwhile, the host, Chile, is participating in this sport in the Pan American Games for the first time.

The Bicentennial Park of Cerrillos, located in the western part of the southern capital, was specially built for the baseball competition of the Games and will host all the games over 11 days, concluding on October 28 when team medals will be decided.

Pan American Games baseball: Favorites

In addition to the newcomers, Pan American Games baseball will feature the teams of Panama, the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, and Cuba.

Venezuela and Cuba, along with Mexico, are the top contenders for medals.

Cuba leads the baseball medal tally at the Pan American Games with 15 medals in total, including 12 gold, in the 18 editions held to date.

The United States also has 15 medals, while Puerto Rico has seven. The United States, the sport’s top professionals, will be absent after surprisingly failing to qualify for the Games during the Central American Games earlier this year.

Baseball has been part of the Pan American Games program since its inception in Buenos Aires in 1951.

It was also included in the Olympic Games in Barcelona 1992, Beijing 2008, and returned in Tokyo 2020 after a hiatus but will not be part of the Paris 2024 Games.

Pan American Games baseball continues on Wednesday, the 19th, with games between Panama and the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Brazil.

However, the spotlight will be on the start of boxing in its preliminary rounds for both men and women, where Cuban and American boxers are also the stars.

Boxing, which will take place at the Olympic Training Center, will run until October 27 and will begin awarding medals a day earlier.

On Wednesday, the round of 16 starts for six weight classes in both categories, three in women’s (50kg, 54kg, and 60kg) and the rest in men’s (57kg, 63.5kg, 71kg), featuring the name of Cuban boxer Lázaro Álvarez, a bronze medalist at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Both disciplines will continue their schedule on Friday, when the diving competition begins. The opening ceremony will take place at 20:30 local time (23:30 GMT).

Baseball, boxing, and diving are part of the list of 39 sports included in the 19th edition of the Pan American Games, which will run until November 5 with the participation of nearly 7,000 athletes from 41 countries.

Also read: The great athletes of Nicaragua.