The president will seek solutions to the cancellation of the contract with Barranquilla
President Gustavo Petro confirmed during a press conference this Tuesday that in the coming weeks he will make a trip to Chile to address various points on his agenda, including a meeting with Neven Ilic, president of the Pan American Sports Organization, the organizers of the 2027 Pan American Games.
In the announcement, Petro indicated: “I am going to visit the scientific ship that is already arriving in Antarctica, and on that trip we will make a stop to speak directly with the president of the executive committee.” Although the exact date of the meeting has not been confirmed, it is expected to be between the trip to Davos (Switzerland) and the “Government with the People” event in Tumaco, scheduled between the third and fourth week of January.
Likewise, the head of state confirmed that he authorized Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva to communicate with presidents or chancellors of the Olympic committees of the 41 countries participating in the Pan American Games. “for the possible realization of an extraordinary exit in order to rescue the games in Barranquilla and the Caribbean.”
In relation to the cancellation of the contract with Barranquilla as headquarters, Petro expressed: “He The National Government has always supported Colombia hosting the games (…) but due to errors in the allocation of resources, ignorance, lack of knowledge and fear of officials, we did not comply.”
In his speech he also said that the Government already has ready the $8 million dollars for the granting of rights to the games. “At any time they could be transferred if the part of the agreement, so there is no problem to transfer the resources that are needed,” he assured.
When asked if the Government intends for the Games to be held in several cities in the country, the president confirmed that “Yes, we would like, due to the effect of boosting tourism, for Barranquilla not to be the sole venue for the Games.” However, he made it clear that that is not the main discussion now. “Today it is time to recover the headquarters,” he pointed out.
At that meeting, which was held behind closed doors at Casa de Nariño starting at 8:00 am, the mayor of Barranquilla, Alex Char, was also present; the governor of Atlántico, Eduardo Verano de la Rosa; the manager of the city of Barranquilla, Ana María Aljure; the president of the Colombian Olympic Committee, Ciro Solano; the Minister of Sports, Astrid Rodríguez; Chancellor Álvaro Leyva and the director of the Department of Social Prosperity, Laura Sarabia.