Pan American Games Aires in 1940, the participants decided that the first games should be held in Buenos Aires in 1942. The plans had to be postponed because of World War II. A second Pan American Sports Congress held in London during the 1948 Summer Olympics reconfirmed Buenos Aires as the choice of host city for the inaugural games, which were held in 1951. The games offered 18 sports. Countries that were part of the Commonwealth of Nations such as Canada did not compete at the first Pan American Games. The second games were held in Mexico City, Mexico. Competitions started on March
Monserrat, Buenos Aires the Casa Rosada. This was followed by the massive razing of colonial architecture (including part of the Cabildo) to make way for the Avenida de Mayo, opened in 1894 and Congressional Plaza, in 1910. The avenue became home to the Buenos Aires Metro's first stations, in 1913. The area's led central location and its presence therein of much of Argentina's governmental structure led to monumental construction over the next twenty years, notable among which are the Buenos Aires City Legislature, the Customs building, the offices of "La Prensa" (today the Buenos Aires House of Culture), the art-deco NH City Hotel