“The numbers speak for themselves”, said Toronto 2015 CEO Saad Rafi.
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Most of the Canadians play in the NCAA and thus know the Americans well – none moreso than Nurse, who is teammates with USA players Breanna Stewart and Moriah Jefferson for the NCAA champion University of Connecticut Huskies.
The host nation’s strong performance has helped the ticket sales.
Canada has five gold medals so far on the track at the velodrome in Milton, Ont.
Tyler Pastornicky ruined those plans by smacking a double to left, scoring two runs and putting the USA up 6-4 before Canada retired the side. Sitting third with a score of 42.10, Phoenix and her mount Pavarotti are separated by one show jumping rail from the leaders, Ruy Fonseca of Brazil riding Tom Bombadill Too on 38.90 and Marilyn Little of the United States in second with 40.30 riding RF Scandalous. He is the second athlete from Kamloops to win a medal at the Pan Am Games. Toronto’s Rosie MacLennan defended the women’s title and Karen Cockburn of Stouffville, Ontario, earned the bronze.
Held every four years, the Americans placed seventh in the 2011 Pan Am while Canada was sixth.
At the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Murray teamed up with fellow United Kingdom signee Skal Labissiere to lead the World Selects to a two-point win over a US team filled with McDonald’s All-Americans.
Ultimately Marilyn Little took home individual gold, Jessica Phoenix claimed individual silver and Ruy Fonseca took bronze.
Evan Dunfee started things off with gold in the men’s 20-kilometre race walk.
The US was on top of the team standings from the start, and all of the team’s riders finished in the top 10.
“I’ve been dreaming about getting a gold medal for Canada since I stepped on the team in 2007 and we’re one step away”, said the 31-year-old from Beaconsfield, Que.
Ryan Cochrane wanted to win gold medals at the Pan American Games without draining his tank completely ahead of the world swim championships later this month.
Cuba Yaria Aguerra scored seven points in the final 15 seconds to win 10-9 over Itzel Manjarrez of Mexico in the women’s under 49kg event, before Carlos Navarro provided some Mexican solace by winning via a golden point over Dominican Republic’s Luisityo Pie in the men’s under 58kg class.
Canada closed out the swimming competition with four medals Saturday, including a gold for Victoria native Cochrane in the men’s 1,500-metre freestyle.
The Canadian women will take on the United States in the gold-medal final on Monday at 8:45 p.m.at Ryerson Athletic Centre.
Robinson, 29, who was also making her major games debut, was eliminated when both she and Let It Bee, her 14-year-old dark bay German-bred gelding, fell at the second jump on course, the Hayracks fence.
Now there is a new petition of Kanye-haters online who want to remove the rapper from his spot performing in a concert at the 2015 Pan-Am Games in Toronto, Canada.
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The cross-country competition was a sell-out event, with 5,000 tickets sold and many more accredited personnel on the grounds.
