28 July 2003

Mejía promises venues will be maintained
President Hipólito Mejía is confident that the nation’s track record of building large sports installations for national or international games and then abandoning them will not be repeated. Addressing the matter during the “Una Vez a la Semana” TV talk show broadcast on the state television station, RTVD, President Mejía said that those experiences were past.
He had been asked about the abandonment of the Barranquita installations built in Santiago for the 1986 Central American and Caribbean Sports Games.
“We have already made the point with José Joaquín (president of the Organizing Committee of the Pan Am Games), with Miguelito [Minister of Public Works], and César [Minister of Sports] to have boards set up to integrate the public sector, regional representatives and the business sector. Those boards and the sports federations will be responsible for the maintenance. That is our role and that is what I will do as soon as possible, having learnt from past negative experiences,” he said.
The Dominican government has invested over RD$1.5 billion in the new venues. Indeed, the cost of the Santo Domingo Games surged from US$60 million in the original official budget to US$158 million. Press reports say the real cost of the Games is more likely RD$10 billion. Ernesto Pérez Cuevas, director of budget, says the Games cost RD$4.8 billion.
During a press conference held in Santo Domingo, Pan American Sports Organization president Mario Vásquez Raña said: “PASO never demanded the construction of Olympic-standard installations, such as were built for the Games here in the Dominican Republic.”
The hefty investment in the Games’ venues has practically paralyzed construction works nationwide.

PASO to pay for air-conditioning units
José Joaquín Puello clarified that the president of the Pan American Sports Organization agreed to deduct from the US$2 million that the Dominican Organizing Committee owed PASO for the rights to host the Games the cost to lease the installation of air-conditioning units in all the bedrooms of the Pan Am Village apartments. Chile, Brazil, Canada and the United States were paying for air-conditioning for their athletes. Vásquez Raña protested that this would divide the village between the rich and the poor countries.
President Hipólito Mejía announced the DR would provide the air-conditioning for all the competitors, but the PASO assembly announced that they would donate the cost of leasing of the units, so as not to up the tab of the Games.
Vásquez Raña said funds would also be allotted to cover the difference in the departure tax, following its augmentation by the government by 100%. It will also cover the increased cost to the doping-detection procedures and the diets of the rowing, canoeing and triathlon athletes.

More free tickets?
Speaking at a press conference Saturday, Mario Vasquez Raña, president of the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO), said that they would not oppose the government’s authorization of free admission to Pan American Games venues. He said PASO would vote favorably on exempting the government from its obligation of the 10% commission on ticket sales. Despite the announced start date of ticket sales, as of yesterday, none had taken place. The latest report is that the tickets are to go on sale today at the Supermercado Nacional branches. Vasquez Raña expressed his concern that ticket sales to the public had not begun with only a week to go before the Games.
It is still probable, however, that most tickets to the sporting events be free, with the exception of those for the opening and closing ceremonies.

Watch for Arrendell
Dominican high jumper Juana Arrendell recorded a score of 1.97 meters in practice runs for the Pan American Games event. The six-foot three-inch athlete recently returned from training in Russia, where she honed her technique. Her coach, Natalia Korotaeva, believes there is a chance that her protege could jump as high two meters in the official competition. Arrendell’s main rivals for the gold medal are Tisha Waller and Amy Acuff from the United States, who have each jumped 1.98 meters.
Making her comeback after a two-year suspension from competition stemming from a positive doping test after winning gold in Winnipeg in 1999, Arrendell’s story is one of courage. In the Central American & Caribbean Games held in November 2002 she jumped 1.97 meters and broke a regional record. In Winnipeg, she recorded a jump of 1.98 meters, which was later disqualified by the doping charge.
Andres Polimar, president of the Track and Field Federation, said that Arrendell registered 1.97 in practice yesterday.
She will compete for gold on Friday, 8 August at the Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Center.

Rains won’t stop the Games
It has been raining on and off in the Dominican Republic lately, but Nelson Ramírez, sports director for the Pan Am Games, says the events will not be suspended for bad weather. He said that 20 of the 35 sports will be played under cover and that certain sporting events can continue, such football, swimming, hockey and sailing. Others, like cycling, tennis, equestrian events, pentathlon, and triathlon can be rescheduled in case of inclement weather. Ramírez admitted that rain would affect baseball and softball competitions.
Satellite photos look optimistic, at least for the opening evening of the Games, as there is nothing threatening in the proximity. Some storms are developing over the African coast, and thus the need to monitor the skies, but it is possible that the bad weather will arrive after the Games have ended.
http://www.stormcarib.com/goes.htm
 

Source: http://dr1.com

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