Wele to the 'Gay Gam,' an Olympics alternative, where activism is enuraged and everyone's an athlete | CNN

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PARIS 2018 | Paris ville hôte s 10ème Gay Gam en 2018

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

Tom Wadll, an athlete the 1968 Olympics, created the Gay Gam first held 1982 to celebrate LGBTQ cln. The Gay Gam are still held to this day wh the next round schled for 2022 Hong Kong. * gay games 2018 sports *

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. That’s what the first Gay Gam were all about.

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.

GAY GAM: MEET THE TEAM LGBT ATHLET PETG AT PARIS 2018

* gay games 2018 sports *

You don’t even have to be gay. 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. 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.

GAY GAM 2018, THE LARGT INTERNATNAL LGBTQ SPORTG EVENT, IS FAST APPROACHG

Josh Miller and Theo Edmonds share their photography and experienc om this summer's Gay Gam Paris. * gay games 2018 sports *

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.

Anyone n participate the Gay Gam – really, jt about anyone. 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.

IMAG OF GAY GAM ATHLET PTURE PETN AND MUNY

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.

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.

HISTORY OF THE GAY GAM

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. Anyone is wele to register to pete at the Gay Gam - you don't have to be a member of the LGBT muny to take 's the most clive ternatnal multi-sports event the world, wh Paris 2018 - the 10th edn - begng on Saturday eveng wh the openg ceremony at Sta Jean-Bou, the home of Sta Franis.

DONATN GOAL FOR GAY GAM 11

For those participants who are lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr, this global get-together the spir of sport will strengthen their sense of muny. That's sure to be felt even more strongly by those om natns where homosexualy is still illegal, as 20 of the total 91 untri reprented, such as Egypt, Indonia, Nigeria and Sdi Arabia. To learn more about the Gay Gam, and s ongog relevance and purpose a world of such actured rights for LGBT people, pendg on their geographil lotn, Sky Sports spoke to two officials om the Feratn of Gay Gam - the erng body that overse the event's global movement - and six petors.

Joanie Evans, -Print, Feratn of Gay GamHavg been elected to her Feratn posn shortly before the last Gay Gam, Cleveland 2014, Paris will mark the first Gam that Joanie has helped oversee om begng to end. Feratn of Gay Gam -print Joanie Evans was a gold medallist football at the Sydney Gam 2002.

Joanie was a gold medallist football at Sydney 2002, but was her trip to New York eight years prr to that wh her Hackney Women FC team-mat for her first Gay Gam that stands out her memory. "The Gay Gam is based on our prcipl of participatn, cln and personal bt.

LGBT+ HISTORY MONTH: THE HISTORY OF THE GAY GAM - THE EVENT THAT GREW BUT STUCK TO S PRCIPL

People don't have to qualify to be part of the Gay Gam, which mak more open.

Also, we're not exclively gay - we do accept everybody.

GAY GAM X - PARIS 2018

If a team's got one or two gay players, and their team-mat want to support them, then that team n absolutely e to the Gay Gam.

"Adam Heathte, Jim Hearson and Ellt Tilbey, footballers wh London Tans FC"It's gog to be my first Gay Gam, so gettg this ticked is one off the bucket list for me, " says Jim Hearson, ms officer and fenr for the London Tans.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* GAY GAMES 2018 SPORTS

Paris 2018 | 10éme Gay Gam .

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