Part of the Pan Am 2015 Games Torch Relay Coming To Richmond

The spirit of the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am and Parapan Am Games is going west to Richmond, a community known for its love of sport. The torch will visit Richmond, and the community will choose a torchbearer to carry the Pan Am flame.

Three-thousand torchbearers will proudly carry the flame and share its welcoming Pan Am spirit on its 41-day journey towards the lighting of the cauldron on July 10, 2015, to officially open the Games.

Canadians from coast to coast are being invited to celebrate and share their Pan Am spirit by entering online for the chance to be a Pan Am torchbearer in their community next year. The TORONTO 2015 torchbearer contest is open until December 1, 2014, at 11:59 p.m. (ET).

“We are tremendously honoured to host the torch relay for the Pan Am Games,” said Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie. “Tens of thousands of our residents came out to see the 2010 Olympic Torch Relay pass through Richmond and this will rekindle those memories and celebrate our national pride as we welcome the Pan Am Games back to Canada.”

“I’m thrilled about this exciting news for the people of Richmond and I applaud their efforts in welcoming and taking part in the TORONTO 2015 Pan American Games torch relay,” said the Honourable Bal Gosal, Minister of State (Sport). “Our Government is proud to support both the Games and the torch relay, which will be a great opportunity to create connections and to showcase our diverse cultures, vast geography and proud history.”

“We’re proud to have the people of Richmond as part of our Games family. The torch relay is all about building excitement for the Games and reinforcing to all Canadians that these are their Games,” said Saäd Rafi, chief executive officer of TO2015. “Cities across Canada and throughout Ontario are enthusiastic about the torch relay, and that sends a strong message to athletes and visitors that Ontarians and Canadians are committed to making these the best Pan Am and Parapan Am Games ever.”

The highly-anticipated relay begins in May 2015 with a traditional Aztec lighting ceremony at the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacan, Mexico. The Canadian journey for the flame starts with its arrival in Toronto on May 30, 2015.

Feature Image: Toronto 2015