* United States lead all countries with 83 gold medals
* Cuban pole vaulter stuns American in women's final
By Frank Pingue
TORONTO, July 23 (Reuters) - Jamaican sprinter Rasheed Dwyer
broke a 44-year-old Pan American Games record on Thursday, a
Canadian brother and sister won a combined four medals and a
sexagenarian qualified for the Rio Olympics in equestrian.
Ian Millar, a 68-year-old Canadian competing in his 10th
consecutive Pan Am Games, led his country to a gold medal in
team equestrian to give Canada an automatic berth in the 2016
Rio Olympics.
"We wanted this so badly for our team and our country," said
Millar, who has also competed in a record 10 Summer Olympics.
"It's not necessarily the same team that will go to Rio next
year, although I have a suspicion it might just be."
Dwyer qualified for Friday's men's 200 metres final in style
as he broke the oldest Pan Am athletics record by crossing the
line in 19.80, eclipsing the 19.86 posted by Jamaican Don
Quarrie in 1971.
His time was also the third fastest non-wind assisted mark
in the world this year. Only American Justin Gatlin, a
four-times Olympics medallist, has gone faster.
Mexico's Brenda Flores also set a Pan Am record in the
women's 10,000m final where she crossed the line in 32 minutes,
41.33 seconds, comfortably ahead of American Desiree Davila
(silver) and Canada's Lanni Marchant (bronze).
In pole vault, Cuba's Yarisley Silva cleared 4.85m, the
highest of any women this year, to win the gold. Brazil's
Fabiana Murer grabbed silver while American Jenn Suhr, a
favourite at next month's world championships, took bronze.
The Dominican Republic's Luguelin Santos, who won a silver
medal in the men's 400m at the 2012 London Olympics, went one
better in Toronto as he captured the gold in the same event with
a season-best time of 44.56 seconds.
Damian Warner, who wanted to experience what it was like to
compete in front of a home crowd despite its proximity to next
month's world championships, took gold in the men's decathlon
and broke a 19-year-old Canadian record in the process.
'OVERCOME DIFFICULTIES'
The United States, buoyed by seven gold medals on Thursday,
strengthened their lead atop the table with 83 gold and 224
overall. Canada remained in second with 69 gold and 186 overall.
The United States beat Canada in the men's fencing team
sabre final while Argentina's Ricardo Bustamante overcame a bout
of sickness to help his team capture the bronze.
"The doctors couldn't give me anything because I was
competing, so I just had to keep up with it - that's it. It
really affected me," said Bustamante.
"I usually don't fence that badly or with that stress. I
managed to overcome the difficulties and here I am with a
medal."
In waterski and wakeboard, one of the eight Pan Am sports
not part of the Olympics programme, a pair of siblings combined
to win one gold medal and three silver.
Canadian water-skier Whitney McClintock combined for three
of the medals as she triumphed in the women's slalom event and
then took silver in the tricks and jump finals.
Her gold medal marked the 65th of the Pan Am Games for
Canada, beating the previous mark of 64 set in 1999 with three
days of competition remaining.
McClintock's brother, Jason, won silver in the men's slalom
and narrowly missed the podium in the tricks competition later
in the day.
"Having friends, family and also seeing so many gold medals
coming in for Canada built some pressure." said Whitney, who
also won gold in Wednesday's women's overall. "But at the same
time it fueled me."
(Editing by Steve Keating.)