Media Advisory - TORONTO 2015 Parapan Am Games Torch Relay to Celebrate in Belleville, Oshawa and Hamilton on August 4

Parapan Am flame to travel via tandem bicycle and sailboat as it makes its way through Ontario

TORONTO, July 30, 2015 /CNW/ - On Tuesday, August 4, Day 2 of the Parapan Am Games Torch Relay, presented by President's Choice® and OLG, the Parapan Am flames will visit Belleville, Oshawa and Hamilton.

The Parapan Am Games Torch Relay is a five-day inspirational journey that features a unique start and is a first in Parapan Am history. Two separate flames — one in the east and one in the west — will be lit on August 3 during special ceremonies in Ottawa, Ontario, and Niagara Falls, Ontario.

East – Belleville, ON and Oshawa, ON

Jane Forrester Park – 11:30 a.m. (ET) (1 South Front Street, Belleville, ON)
Day celebration:

• The Parapan Am flame will be carried by several torchbearers as part of the celebration including, Jahmaal Branker, member of the Boys and Girls Club of Kingston & Area, Donald Jonah and Timothy Franklin Maracle, Special Olympians, and Derek Smith, NHL player for the Arizona Coyotes.
• The community cauldron will be lit by community-nominated torchbearer Karen Kitchen.

Lakeview Park – 6 p.m. (ET) (55 Lakeview Park Avenue, Oshawa, ON)
Evening celebration:

• The community cauldron will be lit by Todd Nicholson, five-time Paralympian and three-time Paralympic medallist, sledge hockey.

West – Hamilton, ON

David Braley Sport Medicine & Rehabilitation Centre – 10:00 a.m. (ET) (1280 Main Street West,Hamilton, ON)
Photo opportunity:                                          

• Joe Boudreau, member of Canada's national wheelchair rugby team, will pass the Parapan Am flame to Gary Saxon, selected by the Shelley Gautier Para-Sport Foundation and President of Ontario Visually Impaired Golfers, who will carry the Parapan Am flame while riding on a tandem bicycle.

The Royal Hamilton Yacht Club, Able Sail Program – 2 p.m. (ET) (555 Bay Street North, Hamilton, ON)
Photo opportunity:                                          

• Helen Dam to carry Parapan Am flame while on-board a sailboat.

Bayfront Park – 7 p.m. (ET) (200 Harbour Front Drive, Hamilton, ON)
Evening celebration:

• Several torchbearers will carry the Parapan Am flame as part of the celebration, including Mike West, Olympic multi-medallist in swimming and Blair McIntosh, Canadian Paralympic Committee board member and vice-president, sport, Special Olympics Canada who has more than 30 years of experience in Canadian amateur sport.
• The community cauldron will be lit by community-nominated torchbearer Michael Joseph.

The Parapan Am flames will be carried by more than 250 torchbearers who will help share the Parapan Am spirit in 12 communities. The flames will then unite in Toronto before travelling to the Opening Ceremony for the TORONTO 2015 Parapan Am Games on August 7 at the CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Athletics Stadium. The torch relay is one of the most exciting events as it sets the stage leading up to what will be the largest Parapan Am Games ever held. 

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

All torch relay media advisories will be available on CNW. Day 2 highlight images and videos will be available on Flickr by copying and pasting this URL into a web browser:
https://www.flickr.com/gp/134804056@N03/19M32p   

The torch relay can also be followed on Twitter.

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

The torch relay starts August 3, 2015, and concludes August 7, 2015, with the dramatic lighting of the cauldron at the Opening Ceremony in 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.

For more information, visit TORONTO2015.org/torch-relay. 

SOURCE Toronto 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games

East (Belleville, Oshawa): Jill MacCannell, Coordinator, marketing and communications, TO2015, 416.996.4076, [email protected]; West (Hamilton): Melissa Iafrate, Coordinator, marketing and communications, TO2015, 647.225.4002, [email protected]