That the South American Games take place Pablo Javkin’s management before the provincial government was fundamental. “The Games are a commitment of the city but the mayor obtained the necessary help so that the Games do not go down. That gave us peace of mind to continue working ”, acknowledged Sebben.
The competitions around the planet had to be reorganized and in some cases they were postponed or suspended. And for the realization of this event, a very great effort was made, so the different delegations have adjusted a lot to a pandemic that hit hard in most sports.
The thing is The South American Youth Games went from being the previous one for Dakar 2022 (which was going to be the set-up for all the South American Committees) to being the only event that this generation will have because Dakar passed to 2026, then there is no other. The pandemic took everything that had turned upside down, until the 2022 Youth Olympic Games.
“There are many things that we are refocusing. We are making a very strong focus on athletes, trying to get the best sporting event in terms of quality that we can provide, that they are comfortable and that they have what they need ”, said the executive director of the games.
Institutionally, the event has incredible weight, as Sebben well exemplified. “Just by thinking that the Brazilian Football Federation, which is the most powerful in all of South America, is under the umbrella of the Brazilian Olympic Committee, you begin to take the real size of the weight that the event has institutionally.”
A few different games
What makes Rosario 2022 an innovative proposal is its centrality, which will make these Youth Games something extraordinary. The pandemic led us to have everything done in one place: Independencia Park. The event will take place over 13 days, with Provincial and Newell’s Old Boys being part of the stages. “The intention is that these institutions are part of it but we do not want to generate alterations in their daily life. All the operational centers will be in the five buildings of the racecourse, with which you optimize time, human resources and the visitor is offered everything in a simpler and more concentrated way. There is no precedent in the history of these events of this type, multisport, that everything happens in one place. It will not only be the center of sporting activity but everything that appears in the middle, with gastronomic proposals, for example. We understand that it will enhance us a lot, both for the quality of the event for Rosario and for those visitors who want to come and experience it. Part of the innovation has to do with the proposal of creating a single award center, it is a detail that may mark a later milestone for any other event. This award center will be located at the Corredor Oroño Fan Fest ”, Sebben synthesized.
Thus and unlike the 2019 Beach Games where the opening ceremony was at the Monument to the Flag, at the Youth Games, both the opening and closing ceremonies will be in the Lake area and the same will happen with the awards ceremony.
“In sports we double or triple the scenarios. For example, anywhere, the soccer scene is soccer. Football ends, the stage closes and you go to another sport. Here, the hockey field, for example, when it ends is transformed into an archery field. That way you optimize resources, you have everything set up and you only change what happens inside. In the case of La Rural (where most of the contact sports will be played) in the two long halls there are three sports. One at the beginning, one in the middle and one at the end, so imagine the engineering of the assembly ”, completed Sebben.
Another thing in which these games will distinguish themselves is that athletes, in addition to competing in their respective disciplines, have the obligation to go through a lot of workshops. “We want them to take an educational background that allows them to go through their future life. It has to do with marking the path of athletes for when they grow up, addressing issues such as anti-doping control, gender violence or how to manage networks. Athletes are going to have to go through these workshops. They are going to scan their credentials because they are mandatory, it is not that they go if they want to. The elderly did not have that possibility and today, these Games are on the way to building that athlete with more tools ”, highlighted Sebben.
“Regarding cultural integration, in the absence of an Olympic village, every noon, all athletes, regardless of the hotel where they are stayingThey will all have lunch together in Independencia Park, ”the official confided.
The event itself pulls other parallel events. During the development of the games, congresses are planned. One for sports medicine, another for sports organization (organized by Odesur) and there is a strong intention to hold a national congress on sports public policies (where there will be a day of debates) in which all levels of the state will be presenting the policies they are carrying out.
Thinking about the start of the games, Sebben imagines April 28 in full: “Now our great challenge is to let people know what is going to happen. It would be mischievous for people to find out that day because of everything there is going to be, it is an event that is going to transcend the sports scene ”.
A little history
On May 25, 2012, the creation of the South American Youth Games was announced, for athletes between 14 and 17 years old, an event that takes place every four years, always in the year before the Youth Olympic Games.
The first edition was held in the city of Lima, from September 20 to 29, 2013. Argentina was fifth in the medal table, harvesting 64 medals, of which 12 were gold, 18 silver and 34 bronze.
The second was played in Santiago de Chile, between September 29 and October 8, 2017, and in it Argentina finished in third position with 102 medals (38 gold, 29 silver and 35 bronze).
14 countries participated in that event in 20 sports disciplines for a total of 1,248 athletes, while for the Youth Games to be held in Rosario from April 28 to May 8, 2022, more than 1500 athletes from 15 countries are expected to compete in 26 sports disciplines, which marks a greater challenge both at an organizational and sports level.
Athletes from Argentina, Aruba, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Curaçao, Ecuador, Guyana, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela in the following disciplines: athletics, badminton, beach handball, 3 × 3 basketball, boxing, cycling, climbing, fencing, futsal, artistic gymnastics, hockey 5, judo, karate, weightlifting, Olympic wrestling, swimming, figure skating, skating sprint, rugby 7, skateboarding, taekwondo, tennis, table tennis, archery and triathlon.
