The political uncertainty facing Peru, still awaiting the presidential run-off on 7 June, contrasts with the message of stability coming from the organisation of the Lima 2027 Pan American and Parapan American Games. In a country that has had eight presidents between 2016 and 2026, several of them “in prison, serving sentences today”, the Peruvian Olympic Committee -COP-, Panam Sports and the Peruvian Sports Institute -IPD- maintain that the commitments made remain on track and that the continental event is not at risk.

In conversation with SportsIn, Renzo Manyari Velazco, president of the COP, argues that the institution is going through “its best moment”, with “absolute consolidation” of the federations’ support for the policies promoted by the Olympic Committee and a “very close” relationship with athletes. The official also highlights coordination with the different actors of the National Sports System, who, he says, see the COP as “a benchmark for leadership, good governance, compliance and strategic management” in favour of Peruvian sport.

Lima 2019 as a starting point

Manyari acknowledges that the road after the Lima 2019 Pan American Games has not been easy. “It has been complex, because with so many changes in the public sphere, within the Peruvian Sports Institute itself, it forces us to consolidate leaderships and plans that can be adapted to change, that can adjust to our needs, but at the same time maintain the essence of proper planning,” explained the president of the COP.

The official, however, also sees Lima 2019 as a turning point for Peruvian sport. “For the COP, it has been interesting and very encouraging to have sporting results. We already have federations appearing on the international stage, with marks and records that are the crowning achievement and legacy of the 2019 Pan American Games,” he said. In that process, Manyari particularly highlights “the generational change from Lima 2019 to Lima 2027”, which he describes as “the true generation of stars of Team Peru”.

Politics does not stop the sports roadmap

Asked how the country continues to function despite political instability, Manyari attributes part of that resilience to Peruvians’ entrepreneurial capacity, the strength of small and medium-sized businesses, domestic consumption, export dynamism and monetary stability. “The key has been the Peruvian people’s ability to generate small and medium-sized companies, which allows for strong consumption within Peru,” he said, before adding that the country went through a favourable period thanks to the rise in raw materials such as gold, silver and copper.

For Manyari, that economic resilience also has a sporting translation. The official says Peru has known how to “move forward” in complex scenarios and that this culture has allowed the COP to act with autonomy and independence. “A good captain is not made in calm waters, but in rough seas, with turbulence,” he said. That reality, he argues, has been channelled positively to consolidate the Governance Plan together with federations and athletes, and to withstand the country’s continuous political changes.

Lima 2027 is not seen as being at risk

The question of the real risk for the Lima 2027 Pan American and Parapan American Games comes directly. Manyari does not avoid the uncertainty, but answers with a conviction based on recent precedent. “I don’t know how strange or fortuitous something would have to be for the Games to fall through,” he said, before adding that “something apocalyptic” would have to happen to put the organisation into question.

The president of the COP recalls what happened before the Bolivarian Games, when the country experienced institutional changes very close to the start of the competition. “They changed the president of the Republic one or two weeks before the Bolivarian Games, they removed the president of the IPD four or five days before the start of the Games, and the Games were held, they took place, not a single event fell through,” he said. For Manyari, that precedent allows him to send a concrete message: “Despite all the difficulties, the Peruvian Olympic Committee, the Peruvian Sports Institute and the authorities of the day always keep their word and carry out their commitments.”

La Videna and the countdown to 2027

The conversation with Manyari ends next to the Villa Deportiva Nacional -La Videna-, home of the Peruvian Olympic Committee and one of the symbols of the Lima 2019 legacy. Its sports venues, located across 21 hectares in the heart of Lima, continue to be recognised by sports authorities across the region for the care they have received and for the role they have played in the transformation of Peruvian sport.

From 23 July, the one-year countdown to Lima 2027 will begin. Peru and its people dream of Games that can serve as a meeting point, with sport acting as a bridge of unity for a society that does not deserve the ups and downs of Peruvian politics. The challenge now will be to turn that sporting stability into a sustained guarantee through to the opening of the Pan American and Parapan American Games.