Feratn of Gay Gam – Team Sydney Sports

Contents:

• WELE TO THE ‘GAY GAM,’ AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE OLYMPICS, WHERE ACTIVISM IS ENURAGED AND EVERYONE’S AN ATHLETE
• WHY THE FIRST GAY OLYMPICS WAS A WATERSHED MOMENT SPORTS
• GAY GAM OPENG CEREMONY
• FERATN OF GAY GAM
• 10 THGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT THE GAY GAM, HEADG TO HONG KONG 2022
• HISTORY OF THE GAY GAM
• LGBT+ HISTORY MONTH: GAY GAM 2023 - WHERE 'S THE TAKG PART THAT UNTS
• GAY GAM NAME MEXI A SEND HOST FOR 2023 WHILE STICKG WH HONG KONG
• SYDNEY GAY GAM 2002 [ELECTRONIC ROURCE]
• GAY GAM VI RESULTS

WELE TO THE ‘GAY GAM,’ AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE OLYMPICS, WHERE ACTIVISM IS ENURAGED AND EVERYONE’S AN ATHLETE

His gay and lbian iends San Francis, though, had never experienced an event as thrillg or movg as the openg ceremony. And so Wadll created the Gay Gam – then lled the Gay Olympics, until the Internatnal Olympic Commtee sued over the name. “The formula for succs was visibily and inty, ” Wadll said an terview followg the first Gay Gam 1982.

Wadll died 1987, but the Gay Gam ntue to this day, growg to an ternatnal phenomenon sce their first eratn.

They draw over 10, 000 athlet and sometim seven or eight tim as many spectators, said Shiv Pl, vice print of external relatns for the Feratn of Gay Gam. You don’t have to be a profsnal athlete – even a proficient one – to pete the Gay Gam.

WHY THE FIRST GAY OLYMPICS WAS A WATERSHED MOMENT SPORTS

And unlike at the Olympics, activism is enuraged at the Gay Gam, as has been sce the begng when the HIV/AIDS crisis was ravagg LGBTQ muni. Above all, though, the Gay Gam are an event for queer and trans people to gather safely, play sports they love and be themselv whout fear of tolerance. The first Gay Gam were held San Francis 1982, where transmissn of HIV had peaked among the cy’s btlg gay muny.

GAY GAM OPENG CEREMONY

The Gay Gam uld be an act of prott then, too, Wadll cid, an event durg which LGBTQ people uld play the same sports they watched durg the Olympics and achieve the same kd of glory he had at the 1968 Olympics. HIV/AIDS awarens has been baked to the Gay Gam sce s ceptn: In addn to banng discrimatn based on genr, sexualy, race and other tras, the Gay Gam wouldn’t allow any participant to be turned away based on their HIV stat. The Gay Gam also succsfully lobbied the US ernment to briefly waive a prev ban on HIV-posive people enterg the untry so they uld pete the 1994 Gay Gam New York and the 1996 Olympics Atlanta, chang ma wh the help of the US Olympic Commtee.

Though Wadll emphasized that sports weren’t the central foc of the Gay Gam, the event has hosted athlet wh real prows. Swimmer Jim Ballard set a world rerd the 100-meter backstroke 2002 at the Sydney Gay Gam. Powerlifter Chris Man began his reer at the Gay Gam and went on to w another 30 medals at var world champnships.

And unlike the “regular Olympics, ” at the Gay Gam, a same-sex figurg skatg pair n don matchg nim jumpsus a performance set to “Hopelsly Devoted to You. The upg Gay Gam will take place next year Hong Kong, where same-sex marriage is not legally regnized. The openg ceremony of the first Gay Gam was the stuff of Wadll’s dreams.

FERATN OF GAY GAM

Wadll died of AIDS 1987, one year after the send Gay Gam, but the Gam and his dream for their impact have only grown sce. Participatn the Gay Gam steadily grew every year was held, and 1994, at the New York Gay Gam, the number of participants exceed the number of athlet at the 1994 Wter Olympics. The 11th Gay Gam, to be held next year Hong Kong, will likely see at least 10, 000 participants.

The openg ceremony of the Gay Gam is still emotnal all the years later, Pl said, pecially when participants om untri where homosexualy is not accepted march the Para of Natns. If you go back to ancient tim, the Olympics have a few centuri on the Gay Gam. But if the last few s of eedom and fun at the Gam are any ditn, the Gay Gam will have a long, storied n.

Sger Ta Turner was the ma draw at the openg ceremony San Francis for the first Gay Gam 1982, but cy supervisor Doris Ward may have received the biggt reactn om the crowd. “She said, ‘I’d like to ve you all to the first-ever Gay Olympics, ’” remembers Jim Hahn, one of roughly 1.

10 THGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT THE GAY GAM, HEADG TO HONG KONG 2022

”But Gay Gam I, which ran om Augt 28-September 5, 1982, faced many challeng, cludg the U.

Olympic Commtee's lawsu barrg the event om g the name "Gay Olympics. You uld have an Olympics for anythg, ” says Shamey Cramer, a swimmer who -led Team Los Angel the first Gam, “but heaven forbid you should be gay or lbian.

HISTORY OF THE GAY GAM

Succeed blockg the official e of the term "Olympic, " but the lawsu galvanized support for the Gam, pecially among the gay muny. Participants the gural event today rell Gay Gam I as a watershed moment for gay athlet around the world. "When I walk to the [Gay Gam] openg ceremoni, " says Hahn, "I always get that sense of history g back.

Olympian Helps Organize Gay GamAthlet wave to the crowd at the 1994 Gay Gam New openg ceremony at the 1994 Gay Gam New skatg petors at the 1994 Gay Gam New closg ceremony for the 1994 Gay Gam New York was held at Yankee men's softball fal at the 1994 Gay Gam was held Central Gay Gam clu a body-buildg the 2002 Gay Gam Sydney, Atralia, nners ngratulate each other at the 5, 000-meter fal.

Like many other LGBT athlet, Wadll wanted to make a siar, powerful statement wh an event for gay MORE: 8 Memorable Protts by Amerin Athlet “You were eher a drag queen or the leather muny—those were the stereotyp that were prented to the public at that time, ” says Rick Thoman, a track and field athlete who peted the first Gay Gam. “They never thought that we were able to be athletic and be gay at the same time.

LGBT+ HISTORY MONTH: GAY GAM 2023 - WHERE 'S THE TAKG PART THAT UNTS

”A number of gay and lbian sports leagu emerged the 1970s, as the LGBT muny gradually announced self to mastream society. Still, many outlets for gay athlet, namely bowlg and billiards leagu, were still tied to the bars that had served as safe harbors for s. “The Gam offer another place to ‘e out’ bis a dark bar, ” Jill Ramsay, the chair of swimmg and divg at the first Gam, told the Bay Area Reporter, one of the natn's first gay newspapers,  1982.

READ MORE: Harvey Milk, in the gay munyLike the mpaigns of gay polician Harvey Milk, a well-known muny anizer, the first Gay Gam were a grassroots project. Wadll ed an irong board as a makhift sign-up table for the Gam on a street rner the Castro, a hub of San Francis's gay muny.

Wadll said the first Gay Gam were put on wh a most budget: $220, 000. How the First Gam Play OutAnnie Wells/Los Angel Tim via Getty ImagShamey Cramer was stmental anizg Gay Gam followg the gural event Gay Gam I, teams were anized by cy, each signg their own uniforms.

GAY GAM NAME MEXI A SEND HOST FOR 2023 WHILE STICKG WH HONG KONG

Charlie Carson, a swimmer who traveled to om New York for Gay Gam I 1982, rells meetg a young swimmer om Atralia who had never peted agast others. READ MORE: Explore history of the LGBTQ movement AmeriIn addn to boxg, basketball, swimmg and a number of other tradnal Olympic sports, the Gay Gam featured billiards, bowlg and a physique petn held at the historic Castro Theater.

Pneerg a New TradnPasl Ron/ALLSPORTGreg Louganis, one of the bt divers Olympic history, publicly revealed he was gay at the Gay Gam to the efforts of Cramer, Hahn, Carson, Thoman and many others, the Gay Gam have taken place every four years sce 1982, wh recent edns drawg parable numbers of athlet to the Olympics and Paralympics.

Carson remas proud of the impact of the Gay Gam on the Olympics and broar sportg world.

SYDNEY GAY GAM 2002 [ELECTRONIC ROURCE]

Six years after the first Gay Gam, equtrian Robert Dover beme the first openly gay athlete to pete the morn Olympics. Olympic gold medalist Bce Hay me out publicly while petg at Gay Gam III 1990.

Four years later, diver Greg Louganis me out as part of the openg ceremony of Gay Gam IV. The Gam also led to a boom the formatn of gay sports clubs across Ameri. “People went back to their muni, and gay sports jt me out of the woodwork, ” says Thoman, who is still a member of a track club that formed the wake of the Gam.

“To be able to be an athlete and be gay, was jt a huge burst of pri. EventsMoswFtivalsMicRA PodstReviewsMix of the dayPlaylistsMagazeFeaturFilmsRA ExchangeNewskd lang, Jimmy Somerville, Peretta Anggerek, Pl Capsis, Deborah Cheetham, Judi Connelli, Bob Downe, Leah Howard, Shna Jensen, Ian "Molly" Meldm, Gillian Mervi, Vana Wagna, 2000 volenteer performers, 13, 00 Gay Gam participantsWe've bought the biggt Gay and Lbian event the world to the southern hemisphere for the first time - Unr New Ski. The purpose of the FGG is to foster and gment the self-rpect of gay men and women throughout the world and to engenr rpect and unrstandg om the non-gay world, primarily through an anized, ternatnal athletic and cultural event held every four years.

GAY GAM VI RESULTS

The missn of the FGG is to promote equaly through the anizatn of the premiere ternatnal LGBT and gay-iendly sports and cultural event known as the Gay Gam. Built upon the prcipl of Participatn, Incln, and Personal Bt™, sce 1982 the Gay Gam have empowered thoands of LGBT athlet and artists through sport, culture, and fellowship. Subsequent Gay Gam were held San Francis (1986), Vanuver (1990), New York (1994), Amsterdam (1998), Sydney (2002), Chigo (2006), Cologne (2010), and Cleveland+Akron (2014).

There are two vios om Gay Gam 10, Image Paris ma 2013 by volunteers of Paris, and Renz-vouz wh Paris, jt released December. “Gay Gam”, “Feratn of Gay Gam”, the terlockg circl vice, and the phrase “Participatn, Incln and Personal Bt” are tramarks of the Feratn of Gay Gam, Inc. While November 2022 may seem far off, LGBTQ athlet the world over are trag and workg hard ahead of the Gay Gam’ 11th stallment, set to take place Hong Kong.

Tom Wadll — who himself was an Olympian, havg peted the 1968 Mexi Cy Olympic Gam and placg sixth the thlon — found the Gay Gam, a sports petn moled after the Olympic Gam.