THE CANADIAN PRESS

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TORONTO - Time is running out for the federal government to indicate whether it supports Ontario's bid for Toronto to host the 2015 Pan Am Games, Premier Dalton McGuinty said Wednesday.

The formal deadline for bids is Jan. 31, 2009, and the Pan American Sports Organization says it wants informal presentations in October. However, McGuinty said the "real" deadline is much sooner. "It's time for the feds to make up their mind," he said.

Pan Am bidders will be heading to Beijing this week to woo voting members who are there for the Olympics. If Ontario is to make a strong case and to have a chance at securing the bid, it needs Ottawa's approval by July 31, he added.

The province can only move forward after getting approval from Ottawa.

"I'm ready and raring to go," McGuinty said as he urged the federal government to make a decision. "It's a great opportunity for Ontario and, among other things, it will give us the chance to put in place recreational sports infrastructure."

McGuinty said the Games will result in much-needed sports facilities - including an Olympic-sized swimming pool - in Ontario, which hasn't hosted a significant international athletic event since the 1930s.

The Pan Am Games would cost close to $1.8 billion to host, and would involve more than 10,000 athletes. Ontario is looking for more than $600 million in funding help from Ottawa.

"This is hardly a bid of Olympic proportion, but it is significant and it will be a benefit to the people of Ontario," McGuinty said, adding he is ready to hop on a plane and head to Beijing for a few days as early as next week.

Ontario's Liberal government says if Toronto were to host the Pan Am Games, it would pour billions of dollars into the province and create thousands of jobs.

Progressive Conservative critic Christine Elliott acknowledged the event would benefit the province, but said Ottawa needs to consider if the bid is economically feasible and in the national interest. She also said the province's bid was short on details.

"The proposal submitted lacked a number of points of information," Elliott said. "Normally these bids are submitted several years in advance."

Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has already said he supports the bid, but it needs final approval from cabinet.

A federal spokesperson said Wednesday the Department of Canadian Heritage is "still reviewing the bid."