Media Advisory - TORONTO 2015 Pan Am Games Torch Relay to Celebrate in Toronto on July 10 Leading Up to the Opening Ceremony

Pan Am flame will visit Toronto Pearson International Airport, Union Station, Toronto Island and a community celebration at Ontario's Celebration Zone at the Harbourfront Centre            

TORONTO, July 8, 2015 /CNW/ - On Friday, July 10, the Pan Am Games Torch Relay, presented by President's Choice® and OLG, the flame will spend its final day in Toronto before arriving at the Opening Ceremony of the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am Games.

The flame will begin the day at Toronto Pearson International Airport and travel downtown on the new Union Pearson Express to Toronto's Union Station. From Union Station, torchbearers will carry the flame through the streets of Toronto en route to the Jack Layton Ferry Terminal. The flame will be carried by Marilyn Bell, the first person to swim across Lake Ontario, before it travels by ferry to Toronto Island. The flame will return to mainland Toronto by police boat in another alternative mode of transportation, where it will then be carried to Ontario's Celebration Zone at the Harbourfront Centre for a community celebration.

Friday, July 10, 2015 (Relay Day 41: Toronto, ON)

Toronto Pearson International Airport – 9:10 a.m. (ET) (Terminal 1, 6301 Silver Dart Dr, Mississauga)
Photo opportunity:

• Howard Eng, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, will be the first torchbearer of Day 41.

Union Station – 9:45 a.m. (ET) (65 Front Street West, Toronto)
Photo opportunity:

• Pan Am flame will arrive via Union Pearson Express, carried by its President, Kathy Haley.

Jack Layton Ferry Terminal and Toronto Island – 12:25 p.m. (ET) (Bay Street at Queens Quay, Toronto)
Photo opportunity:

• Flame will arrive carried by torchbearer Katherine Cullen, who will pass the flame to Marilyn Bell, retired long distance swimmer and the first person to swim across Lake Ontario, who will then pass the flame to community torchbearer and former competitive swimmer Cynthia Berringer. Berringer will carry the Pan Am flame on board the ferry boat to the Toronto Island.
• Beginning at 1 p.m., torchbearers will carry the flame along Avenue of the Island before it returns to the mainland.

Ontario's Celebration Zone – 2 p.m. (Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay West, Toronto)
Community celebration:

• Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders will arrive on a police boat at 1:55 p.m. carrying the Pan Am flame and will pass it to Crispin Duenas, Olympian and Pan Am Games archery multi-medallist. Duenas will then carry the flame into Ontario's Celebration Zone, the final community stop before the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am Games Opening Ceremony.

The Pan Am Games Torch Relay is a 41-day journey that will share the Pan Am spirit in more than 130 communities. The torch relay is one of the most exciting events as it sets the stage leading up to the Games.  There will be more than 3,000 torchbearers and 180 community celebrations taking place.

Media Materials
The following torch relay items are available at TORONTO2015.org/torch-relay: relay route map, full list of communities and dates, daily highlight summaries and media vehicle registration information.

All torch relay media advisories and news releases are available on CNW. Day 41 highlight images and videos are available on Flickr by copying and pasting this URL into a web browser: https://www.flickr.com/gp/133157263@N06/7MFWH8

The torch relay can also be followed on Twitter.

About the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am Games Torch Relay  
The TORONTO 2015 Pan Am Games Torch Relay, presented by President's Choice® and OLG, is supported by community partner CIBC, signature supporters Star Media Group and Metroland Media, Ontario Trillium Foundation and Porter Airlines, and funding parties the Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario. The torch relay will invite Canadians to celebrate and share the Pan Am spirit throughout its 41-day journey towards Toronto, the Host City of the Games.

The torch relay starts May 30, 2015, and concludes July 10, 2015, with the dramatic lighting of the cauldron at the Opening Ceremony in downtown Toronto.

The TORONTO 2015 Games are funded by the Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario, as well as Lead Partner CIBC and other partners and sponsors.

To learn more about the torch relay and when the Pan Am flame will visit a community near you, visit TORONTO2015.org/torch-relay or download the official TORONTO 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games app, presented by CIBC.

SOURCE Toronto 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games

Melissa Iafrate, Coordinator, marketing and communications, TO2015, 647.225.4002, [email protected]