|
Doctor Tom Waddell,
a decathlon competitor at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City,
conceived this athletic event as an opportunity for gay people
to demonstrate to the world A group called San Francisco Arts and Athletics (SFAA) was formed. Two years were spent in the planning of this event which was to be called GAY OLYMPIC GAMES. Opening ceremonies were planned for August 28, 1982 and TINA TURNER agreed to perform. Three weeks before the opening, the United States Olympic Committee obtained an injunction in federal court prohibiting the use of the word "Olympic". This despite the fact that the USOC had ignored the use of the ancient word by Special Olympics, Police Olympics, Nude Olympics, Dog Olympics, and many others. This created chaos and near collapse as the organizing committee scrambled to delete every use of the sacred word in advertising, merchandising, every activity, and every printed page. Somehow, the committee completed the Herculean task and the Opening Ceremonies of the GAY GAMES were held at Kezar Stadium (once the home of the 49er's football team, and now no longer in existence) in San Francisco on schedule. The Master of Ceremonies was Armistead Maupin, author of "Tales of the City". SFAA appealed
the Federal Court's injunction and a legal battle raged for two
years. It was "However, by 1993 the USOC had changed its tune, waiving the legal fees against Tom Waddell's estate and inviting the Federation's Executive Committee to meet with the USOC in Colorado Springs, Colorado, to 'discuss matters of mutual interest.' A break through in communication was established and a rapprochement is now in place. In 1994, the USOC awarded then out-of-the-closet Olympic Championship diver Greg Louganis its highest award. In Greg's acceptance speech he dedicated the award to Tom Waddell and implored the USOC not to have Olympic volleyball played in homophobic Cobb County, Georgia, as part of the 1996 Olympic Games. It worked. In 1994 the USOC prominently listed Gay Games IV in its annual handbook under noteworthy events. The Gay Games can and do make a difference!" GAY GAMES II It was never
the intention of the SFAA to make the Gay Games entirely a San
Francisco event. They were kept here a second time in order to
refine them and clearly establish their In 1982, AIDS was virtually unknown. But by 1986, it was an ominous and very scary black cloud that threatened the Gay community. Gay Games II was a psychological boost as it demonstrated our strength, spirit, and unity. Tom Waddell was diagnosed with pneumocystis pneumonia 4 weeks before the start of the games, but competed in Track & Field and won a gold medal for Javelin. Dianne Feinstein, Mayor of San Francisco, welcomed the crowd at the Opening Ceremonies with: "I am so pleased to be here! Welcome to San Francisco and these Gay Games. They are very important, and don't let anybody tell you they are not. One of the things it has been a privilege for me to see is the spirit and talent that resides in this community - special spirit, special talent, a coming together in times of trial with the idea that "We Shall Overcome." What's important is that you are here; What's important is that you are good; What's important is that you are coming together from all over the world in peace and love to demonstrate to all who are willing to see that you are energetic, enthusiastic, and that you have much to give to this needy world." At the Closing Ceremonies, Tom Waddell announced that the site chosen for Gay Games III was Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was a very emotional moment for many of us in the stands because we knew that Tom was not likely to be with us in Vancouver. Doctor Tom Waddell,
founder of the Gay Games, Gay Games III
The Gay Games
grew immensely in both size and stature in the four short years
since San Francisco. Vancouver, a very beautiful and friendly
city, rose to the occasion. A portion of this effort was funded
by the Canadian Federal Government. Vancouver's City Government
Gay Games IV
The organizers
of Gay Games IV chose to have the Games coincide with the Stonewall
celebration. The games were held during the last week of June,
1994. A The Stonewall "March on the United Nations" took place the following morning. At the last minute the route of the march was changed and partly due to defiance and partly due to confusion, there were two marches; one up Fifth Avenue and one up First avenue. They converged near the entrance to Central Park. It was a joyous gathering on a beautiful summer Sunday afternoon in Manhattan. It took until late afternoon for the final marchers to reach the celebration site. One highlight of the march was a Rainbow Flag one-mile long! (That's 1.6 Kilometers.) The headline entertainer at the Central Park celebration was Liza Minnelli. For one long eight-day week Manhattan was inundated with Gays, Lesbians, and their friends (which includes but is in no way limited to: 'heterosexual', 'bisexual', 'trisexual', 'transsexual', 'homosexual children of heterosexual parents', 'transgendered', 'transgendering', 'bicoastal', 'queer', 'fag', 'drag queen', and, of course, the ubiquitous 'questioning'!). I hope I didn't
leave anyone out! From dawn to dawn, every happening, every restaurant,
every subway train, everything was predominantly gay! And the
games were played, and records were broken, and medals were won.
Tears of pride and joy were shed. Friendships were made, spirits
raised, eyes opened, and hopes renewed! Gay Games V "Friendship
Through Culture and Sports" is the motto of Gay Games V
held on the first eight days of August 1998 in the beautiful
city of Amsterdam. This was the first time Gay Games The following
is quoted from the GAY GAMES AMSTERDAM 1998 Website: FRIENDSHIP THROUGH CULTURE AND SPORTS August 1, 1998
was anything but a normal Saturday in Amsterdam. It was the culmination
of four years of planning by a core group of 62 dedicated workers.
It was the first of eight days of community service for 3842
generous volunteer "FRIENDS". It was the beginning
of a week of opportunities for 15,000 participants to strive
to achieve their personal best. Finally, it was Opening and closing ceremonies were held in the beautiful new 50,000 seat Arena. The Mayor, Mr. Schelto Patijn, speaking on behalf of the people of Amsterdam, welcomed everyone with glowing praise and encouragement and thanked us warmly for coming. The 30 athletic events and a large variety of cultural programs were held at locations throughout the City, but the focal point was The MUSIEKTHEATER, Amsterdam's concert hall, which was transformed into FRIENDSHIP VILLAGE. Here, one could meet friends for lunch or drinks, cruise, buy event tickets and merchandise, volunteer to help out, check out the posted results of various events, wander through the halls and view the MEGA-POSTERS which changed daily, pick up a copy of the free newspaper, THE DAILY FRIENDSHIP, enjoy free live entertainment, or simply sit and watch the boats pass by on the canal. In the evening, the focus shifted to the Dam (in front of the Royal Palace) in the City center. Here, a huge temporary stage and bleachers converted the square into an outdoor concert hall; the best show in town, free, nightly! There was also a free outdoor film festival in Vondel Park. Included among the cultural events was an international festival of lesbian and gay choirs featuring more than 2,000 singers. There were so many cultural events being offered, that if they had been presented in sequence it would have taken months to view them all. In addition, all the major museums mounted exhibits with themes which complemented the theme of the week, For eight electric days and nights, Amsterdam was crammed with all kinds of people; fat, skinny, old, young, tall, and short. They had one thing in common- They were all beautiful! There is no doubt - the Gay Games can change the world! GAY GAMES VI On November 13,
1997, The Federation of Gay Games, meeting in Denver, chose SYDNEY
AUSTRALIA to be the host for the 2002 Gay Games VI. Other cities
that bid for the Games The stadium was
sold out for the Opening Ceremonies, and apparently the entire
week was a total success. 13,000 competitors from 80 nations
participated. That's pretty incredible, Marie Bashir, Governor of New South Wales, initiated the Opening Ceremonies. The headline performer was singer KD Lang. The highlight of the evening, as always, was the Parade of Athletes. The Tom Waddell Awards for outstanding Gay Games participation were presented at the Closing Ceremonies to Susan Kennedy, past co-president of the Federation of Gay Games and member of the board of directors of Team San Francisco, and to Stuart Borrie, Director of Sport for Sydney 2002 Gay Games. The award was also given posthumously to Mark Bingham, hero of Flight #93 on September 11, 2001. His mother Alice Hoglan accepted the award. GAY GAMES VII Gay Games VII
will be held in Chicago from July 15 to July 22, 2006. Three
other Cities; Atlanta, Montreal, and Los Angeles, also bid to
host the seventh of the Gay Games. The However, it was officially announced in Sydney at the closing of Gay Games VI that Montreal would host Gay Games VII. Roger Brigham, Director of Communications for the Federation of Gay Games explains the mixup: The successive financial failures of previous Gay Games hosts, coupled with the worsening world economy post 9/11, convinced the FGG that it needed to oversee the financial administration of the Gay Games and require host cities to get approval for budget expansions. Montreal, after two years of negotiations, walked away from the bargaining table and the FGG re-opened the bid process to the other original bidders: Atlanta, Chicago and Los Angeles. Atlanta opted not to bid; in March of 2004, Chicago was chosen over Los Angeles and signed the license agreement that allows for tighter financial overview. Chicago Games, Inc. is composed of volunteers with two decades of experience organizing LGBT sports events in the Midwest. They worked closely with the FGG's Registration Advisory Group to launch the registration site in record time and have been able to secure some notable venues, including Soldier Field for Opening Ceremonies and Wrigley Field for Closing Ceremonies. Montreal claims that FGG pulled the plug on them. Apparently the Montreal organization decided to challenge FGG's leadership and compete with Gay Games by staging 1ST WORLD OUTGAMES MONTREAL 2006 at the same time, July 29 to August 5, 2006. Chicago then upstaged Montreal by rescheduling Gay Games VII for July 15 to July 22. It sounds to me like a "No Win" situation for gay athletes. 16,000 are registered
to compete in Montreal. The Chicago Games are expected to draw
12,000 participants and offer 31 sports: Badminton, Basketball,
Beach Volleyball, Bowling, Cycling, DanceSport, Darts, Diving,
Figure Skating, Flag Football, Golf, Ice Hockey, |
that
their skills and competitive spirits in sports parallel those
of the rest of humanity and to show how "normal" gays
tend to be in comparison to the stereotypes. He wanted to replace
the obsession to win at all costs with the positive joys of simple
participation. These games would require no minimum ability for
participation. Winning would be defined as achieving one's personal
best. Competition would not stress nationalism or age and men
and women would compete on an equal basis. Tom Waddell felt Nationalism
was a disunifying concept, so athletes were encouraged to represent
their city rather than their country.
finally settled
by the United States Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision in favor
of the USOC in March, 1987. The still-vindictive USOC arranged
to have legal fees of $92,000 levied against Tom Waddell's residence,
despite the fact he was fighting for his life against AIDS. 
philosophy.
Having four years to plan the event, a much more diverse and
entertaining set of events was scheduled by the SFAA. "Procession
of the Arts", a series of cultural events complementing
Gay Games II, was added. This included concerts, exhibits, plays,
conferences, films, dances, cabarets, and an old-fashioned Circus
Parade! The events promoting the talents and creativity of the
Lesbian/Gay 
In
1989 the SFAA disbanded and in its place the Federation of Gay
Games was born just 5 months before the Vancouver Games. The
Federation is the governing organization of the Gay Games and
is charged with promoting and protecting the ideals of the games.
Unlike the Olympics which are exclusive, the Gay Games include
competitors with every level of ability from record setter to
recreational.
and its police department were
very supportive. Athletes were allowed free use of public transportation!
Thousands of local people volunteered their help and Gay Games
III became the largest volunteer effort in Vancouver's history.
Opening and Closing Ceremonies and many social events were held
in public buildings remaining from Vancouver's Expo. The people
of Vancouver generously opened their city and their hearts and
made an excellent impression on the visitors to Gay Games. The
event was a tremendous opportunity for gays and lesbians to be
seen in the public eye in a wholesome atmosphere that emphasizes
fun and diversity, both cultural and athletic. It was in Vancouver
that the Gay Games became Olympian in magnitude and rose to the
stature of a world-class event!
It's
true. More athletes competed in Gay Games IV than any other event
including the Olympics! The games were held in June in New York
City instead of August because 1994 was the 25th anniversary
of the Stonewall Riots which occurred in Greenwich Village in
June of 1969. The riots were the result of corruption and intolerance
in the NYPD and were 
sparked
by a routine police raid on the Stonewall Inn on Christopher
Street. Rioting continued for three days. Stonewall is considered
by many to be the beginning of the Gay Liberation movement in
America.
capacity crowd of
55,000 people attended the Closing Ceremonies on Saturday,June
25 at Yankee Stadium, a historic shrine in the world of heterosexual
sports. The parade of athletes into the stadium lasted nearly
2 hours! 
was
held outside of North America. They have proven to be immensely
popular and they reap a fortune in good-will and understanding.
Amsterdam with all of its wonderful qualities did much to increase
the stature of the games and the gay community as well. 
a day when the charming citizens of Amsterdam opened their sparkling
city and their warm hearts to host the 250,000 visitors who gathered
to celebrate the strength, beauty, and diversity 
are Toronto,
Montreal, Dallas, and Long Beach. 
considering
the high cost and long hours of travel to the remote location.
Board
of the Federation of Gay Games chose the winning City by vote
at a New York meeting on March 2, 2004 
Marathon,
Martial Arts, Physique, Pool Billiards, Power Lifting, Racquetball,
Road Races 5/10K, Rowing, Rugby, Sailing, Soccer / Football,
Softball, Squash, Swimming, Tennis, Track and Field, Triathlon,
Volleyball, Water Polo and Wrestling.