Sports in Puerto Rico can be traced from the ceremonial competitions amongst the pre-Columbian Native Americans of the Arawak (Taíno) tribes who inhabited the island to the modern era in which sports activities consist of an organized physical activity or skill carried out with a recreational purpose for competition. One of the sports which the Taíno's played was a ball game called "Batey". The "Batey" was played in "U" shaped fields two teams; however, unlike the ball games of the modern era, the winners were treated like heroes and the losers were sacrificed.
The 1955 Pan American Games opened on March 12, 1955, in the University Stadium in Mexico City, Mexico, in front of a capacity crowd of 100,000 spectators.
The 1963 Pan American Games were held from April 20 to May 5, 1963, in São Paulo, Brazil.
The 1971 Pan American Games were held in Cali, Colombia, from July 30 to August 13, 1971. A total of 2,935 athletes from 32 countries participated in seventeen sports.
The 1987 Pan American Games, officially known as the X Pan American Games, was a major international multi-sport event held in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, on August 7–23, 1987. Over 4,300 athletes from 38 countries in the Americas competed in 30 sports, earning 1,015 medals. Events were held at 23 venues in and around Indianapolis. The official mascot for the games was Amigo, a green parrot.
The 1991 Pan American Games were held in Havana, Cuba from August 2 to August 18, 1991. There were 4,519 athletes from 39 countries of the PASO community, with events in 33 different sports. The main stadium was the Estadio Panamericano, a multi-use stadium in Havana that holds 50,000 people.
The 1999 Pan American Games, officially the XIII Pan American Games or the 13th Pan American Games, was a major international multi-sport event that was held from July 23 to August 8, 1999, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and surrounding towns and cities. Canoeing competitions started the day before the games officially begun. Approximately 5,000 athletes from 42 nations participated at the games. A total of 330 medal events in 34 sports and 42 disciplines.
The Puerto Rico national baseball team is the national baseball team of Puerto Rico. The men's senior team is currently ranked 13th in the world. Puerto Rico is the incumbent Pan American and Central American/Caribbean champion, as well as the World Baseball Classic runner-up. The team will compete against Israel, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Nicaragua in the 2023 World Baseball Classic in March 2023 in Miami, Florida.
The Netherlands national baseball team is the national baseball team of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, representing the country in international men's baseball. They are currently ranked as the best team in the WBSC Europe, and the team is also ranked ninth in the WBSC World Rankings.
Baseball was popularized in Cuba by Nemesio Guillot, who founded the first major baseball club in the country. It became the most played sport in the country in the 1870s, before the period of American intervention.
The 17th Central American and Caribbean Games were held in Ponce, a city in southern Puerto Rico. The Games were held 19–30 November 1993, and included 3,570 athletes from 31 nations.
The Men's Boxing Tournament at the 1987 Pan American Games was held in the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, United States from August 8 to August 23.
The 2008 America Baseball Cup was held in the Venezuelan cities of Puerto Ordaz and El Tigre, from September 26 to October 7. The tournament acted as a qualifier for the 2009 World Cup.
Baseball at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara was held between October 19 and 25, 2011. All games were played at the Pan American Baseball Stadium in Lagos de Moreno, Mexico. The draw for the competition took place in July 2011, in which the eight teams were drawn into two groups of four.
Softball at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara were held in between October 17 and 23. All games were played at the Pan American Softball Stadium. Pan American softball is competed by women only, while men compete in the similar sport of baseball. Each team can enter a team of 17 athletes for a maximum of 136 competitors for this tournament.
Baseball at the 1995 Pan American Games was contested between teams representing Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Guatemala, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico, and the United States. The 1995 edition was the 12th Pan American Games, and was hosted by Mar del Plata.
Baseball at the 1991 Pan American Games was contested between teams representing Aruba, Canada, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, and the United States. The 1991 edition was the 11th Pan American Games, and was hosted by Havana.
Baseball at the 1983 Pan American Games was contested between teams representing Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico, United States, and Venezuela. The 1983 edition was the ninth Pan American Games, and was hosted by Caracas.
Nicaragua competed in the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada from July 10-26, 2015.
Puerto Rico competed in the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada, from July 10 to 26, 2015. Unlike the 2011 Pan American games, Puerto Rico did not perform well, earning only 1 gold and silver each, and 13 bronze medals.
