The Central American and Caribbean Games (CAC or CACGs) are a
multi-sport regional championship event, held quadrennial (once every four years), typically in the middle (even) year between
Summer Olympics
The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The ina ...
. The games are for countries in
Central America
Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...
, the
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean ...
, Mexico, and the
South American Caribbean countries of Colombia,
Guyana
Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...
,
Suriname
Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the nor ...
, and Venezuela.
The games are overseen by
Centro Caribe Sports (''formerly CACSO''). They are designed to provide a step between sub-CACG-region Games held the first year following a Summer Olympics (e.g. Central American Games) and the Continental Championships, the
Pan American Games
The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is hel ...
, held the year before the
Summer Olympics
The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The ina ...
.
The
last Games were held in
Barranquilla, Colombia between 19 July to 3 August 2018. The
next Games will be held in San Salvador as main host in 2023.
History
The CACGs are the oldest continuing regional games in the world, and only the Olympics have run longer.
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
,
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...
and
Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by Hon ...
were the three countries present at the first games, which were then called the ''Central American Games''. In 1935 their name was changed to ''Central American and Caribbean Games'' to reflect expanding participation.
The 1942 edition was suspended after the impact of the
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
.
A "Central American Games" does exist today, Juegos Centroamericanos, involving just
Central America
Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...
n countries.
Editions
The first two editions of the Games were known as the "Central American Games" at the time, but the edition lineage continued after the inclusion of the Caribbean nations in 1935.
Sports
Nations
Historical medal count
The following medals were won:
Veracruz 2014 – Medal Count
from the Veracruz 2014 website (); retrieved 2014-11-30.
Central American and Caribbean Beach Games
Central American and Caribbean Junior Games
See also
* Centro Caribe Sports – organizers of the Central American and Caribbean Games
*Pan American Games
The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is hel ...
** Bolivarian Games
**'' Central American and Caribbean Games'' on Spanish Wikipedia
*** Athletics at the Central American and Caribbean Games
** Central American Games
** South American Games
* Central American and Caribbean Athletic Confederation
* Latin American Table Tennis Union
The Latin American Table Tennis Union (LATTU), or Unión Latinoamericana de Tenis de Mesa (ULTM) in Spanish, was one of the table tennis continental federations recognized by International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) before 2021. The ULTM was co ...
References
Citations
*
{{Caribbean topics, state=collapsed
International sports competitions in Central America
International sports competitions in the Caribbean
Recurring sporting events established in 1926
Multi-sport events in North America