Canadian swimmer Harvey among 1,000s of other athletes as Pan Am Games begin this week in Chile

WARNING: This story contains a discussion of suicide.

So much has changed in the four years since the previous Pan American Games took place in Lima, Peru, in 2019. In the wake of the pandemic, the world undoubtedly looks and feels different. 

But unlike so many other global sporting spectacles, including the 2020 Tokyo Olympics that were pushed back a year, the Pan Am Games have been relatively unaffected, spared by the timing of the quadrennial event.  

The 2023 Game begin Friday, Oct. 20 in Santiago, Chile, and run through Nov. 5. It's the first time the world's third-largest, multi-sport Games are being held in the South American city. Two previous times Santiago had been awarded hosting rights, in 1975 and 1987, but withdrew both times because of financial and political issues. 

Competition is set to begin on Friday, Oct. 20 running through to Nov. 5, and will feature 39 sports — 21 of which will serve as Olympic qualifiers — and 61 disciplines. Live coverage is available on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem.

More than 6,000 athletes from 41 countries in the Americas and Caribbean will be there, 473 from Canada.

Included in that group is Canadian swimmer Mary-Sophie Harvey, who made her Pam Am debut four years ago in Lima, and who has been reflecting on her life since 2019. 

Four years ago, Harvey could have never imagined this for herself.  

Prior to those Games, Harvey was spiraling into darkness. Battling an eating disorder, mental health concerns and a lingering shoulder injury, Harvey had just missed making the senior team heading to the world championships and questioned her future in the sport. 

She was prepared to quit. 

"I started to skip meals. I would barely have one meal a day," Harvey, 24, said recently. "I made the Pan Am team. I thought I'd be happy about that but afterwards I still felt empty."

A month before those Lima Games, Harvey says she attempted suicide. She called her mom and went to the hospital to recover. 

"I stayed at her place for a month and then went to Pan Ams," Harvey said. 

The swimmer from Trois-Rivières, Que., went to Lima not fully knowing what to expect. What unfolded over the week of competition was a surprise to many, including Harvey.