Let The Gaymes Begin

Chicago Sun-Times

July 6, 2006

By Mark J. Konkol

Thousands of gay and lesbian and transgender and straight athletes will kick off Gay Games VII on July 14 by marching into Soldier Field -- Chicago's lakefront home of major sporting events since 1924 -- with their hearts set on breaking stereotypes and maybe even some records.

With the MetLife blimp hovering over the stadium, dancers, acrobats and musicians -- including rock star Andy Bell of Erasure -- are set to perform in what's being billed as an opening ceremony "full of surprises."

And it will be broadcast live to the world on Sirius Satellite Radio.

Organizers say the sports and cultural extravaganza will be Chicago's coming-out party to the world -- marking our town as an international gay and lesbian travel spot more than rainbow-colored pylons in Boys Town ever could.

"Chicago is a great gay and lesbian destination, but it's never been seen globally the same way as San Francisco or Amsterdam or New York," said Gay Games spokesman Kevin Boyer.

"The Gay Games puts in the minds of the international traveling public that Chicago is a great gay and lesbian destination."

More than a sports competition, the Gay Games has always been a statement -- peaceful demonstration even -- aimed at breaking down stereotypes, bigotry and hate aimed at homosexuals.

Back in 1982, the late Olympic decathlete Thomas Waddell founded the games in San Francisco as a way of countering the stereotype of "men with lisps who cross their legs like women, mince down the street and have wrist drop" by showcasing athletic homosexuals.

What started with 1,350 athletes competing in 17 events now boasts about 12,000 participants from about 65 countries in 30 events, including about 800 people taking part in cultural events.

Gay Games VII ambassador Esera Tuaolo, a former NFL nose tackle who played for the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl XXIII, says he's participating in flag football and volleyball to help carry on the message.

"It's exactly what we're striving for, continuing [Waddell's] work and eliminating the stereotypes of gay athletes across the board," Tuaolo said. "I never thought in a million years I would participate in such an event and be out and proud. It definitely breaks down stereotypes of who we are as a culture."

RECORDS COUNT

Make no mistake, the Gay Games isn't for "sissies."

"Don't sugarcoat it. This is no piece of cake. There will be world-class athletes, and if you break a record, it counts," Tuaolo said. "So you get people who also compete in the Olympics or the highest level of college sports."

You'll find those athletes participating in top-tier competitions including figure skating, diving, bodybuilding, wrestling, bicycling, running events and the triathlon.

The Gay Games even has adopted the World Anti-Doping Agency list of banned substances and policies to discourage drug use among participants. Drug tests are required for athletes participating in physique and powerlifting and are optional in wrestling.

But many more folks will take part in events designed to interest the weekend warrior or barroom regular: flag football, softball, darts, billiards and the like.

There will be singing, dancing and cheerleading competitions, plus nighttime celebrations of gay culture.

"The point is to provide people a way to perform at their personal best while at the same time being inclusive. By definition, the Gay Games are not only about elite sports played at elite levels. You need sports people are used to competing in. It's the very nature of the Gay Games, and that's different from the Olympics."

Softball, for instance, is the runaway favorite event, with more than 1,300 signed up to play.

"The Gay Games reflects the nature of community-based organizations. That's why darts and billiards are events," Boyer said. "You can play while enjoying a few brewskis."

STRAIGHTS WELCOME, TOO

While most of the participants will be gay or lesbian, organizers expect a handful of straight participants. At Gay Games VI in Sydney, Australia, in 2002, about 6 percent of the athletes said they were straight, organizers said.

"By the games' nature, it is inclusive; everyone is welcome. Part of our mission is to reduce stereotypes based on sexual orientation," Boyer said.

Cook County Commissioner Mike Quigley -- a straight man who represents a sizable gay and lesbian community on the North Side -- plans to play ice hockey at the gay games with a local team, the Blackwolves.

"You only have to ask me once to play hockey," Quigley says. "And as an elected official in my minor post, I want to send a message that we all have more in common than we have differences. The whole spirit of sports is to put those differences behind us. And just as importantly, it's going to be fun."

Heterosexuals won't be the only group in the minority among athletes. Only about 10 people who identify themselves as "transgender" are expected to participate.

Donna Rose, known as David Rosen before her sexual reassignment surgery in 2000, plans to wrestle in the Gay Games. A former college champion in Canada, Rose is heading back to the mat for the first time as a woman.

"Some [transgender people] don't see the gay and lesbian community to be a welcoming place. I daresay I don't expect more than a handful of us there," she said. "But I see [the Gay Games] as a way to be a face for transgender people. When you talk to someone and know them as a person, you overcome barriers and become more comfortable."

ILLINOIS FAMILY INSTITUTE PROTEST

Not everyone views the Gay Games as a winner for Chicago.

The Glen Ellyn-based Illinois Family Institute has been the most vocal Gay Games basher -- arguing against the federal government's decision to allow HIV-infected Gay Games participants to travel here from other countries.

Peter LaBarbera, executive director of the institute, said gay bathhouses listed as Gay Games sponsors promote reckless sexual activity, paving the way for spreading HIV.

There was controversy in suburban Crystal Lake before the park district board voted to allow the Gay Games to hold rowing events in town.

And even a few Cook County commissioners demanded their names be taken off a resolution welcoming the Gay Games to Chicago.

Cook County commissioner and Republican board president nominee Tony Peraica said he pulled his name from the resolution because he didn't want to be associated with the Gay Games.

"As a matter of public policy, I did not want to celebrate or encourage that kind of a situation," he said.

With opening ceremonies only 13 days away, Gay Games officials declined to comment on "old news," instead focusing on the event's spirit of "inclusion."

After the Gay Games inaugural San Francisco event, the number of participants doubled to 3,500 at Gay Games II four years later.

RECORD CROWDS IN '94

And during the height of the AIDS epidemic, the 1990 Gay Games in Vancouver, Canada, became an even bigger international affair with participants from 27 countries -- about 7,300 athletes competing in 27 sports.

The 1994 games in New York City drew record crowds because it coincided with a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall rebellion, a civil rights protest of a police raid on a gay bar.

But the last two Gay Games, in Amsterdam and Sydney, respectively, had some financial trouble, failing to draw expected crowds and getting bailed out by the host cities.

Gay Games VII organizers said similar financial problems won't affect this year's games, which have a different, "more diversified financial model."

Gay Games board of directors co-chairman Sam Coady said organizers learned lessons from the Sydney Gay Games. Rather than hosting parties and several cultural events that drained revenues, this year's games will center on sports.

Post-game parties are being run by Gay Games "affiliates" who pay a licensing fee. The number of cultural events has been scaled back.

Unlike the Sydney Games, organizers started early in promoting opening and closing ceremony headliners, including Cindy Lauper and Erasure's frontman Andy Bell. That move has led to steady ticket sales, said Coady, a self-described "finance geek."

And this year, the Gay Games has benefitted from corporate sponsors.

"There's been a change in the corporate sector and their willingness to participate in gay and lesbian marketing," Boyer said.

Compared with the 40 or so sponsors for the New York City Gay Games, this year's games have about 340 sponsors (including the Chicago Sun-Times) that have donated $2.4 million in cash and $7.5 million worth of in-kind contributions.

The sponsor list includes global giants such as Kraft, ESPN and Gatorade, among others.

"We have support everywhere from pizza places to corporate America," Coady said. "It's really pretty amazing."

TOURIST PAYDAY

And for Chicago, the Gay Games is expected to generate an impressive $80 million in tourism dollars.

Coady said about 20,000 hotel rooms reserved for Gay Games participants and fans are nearly sold out.

The apparent financial success comes despite a rival gay-centric competition -- the World Out Games -- later this month in Montreal, originally proposed as a site for this year's event.

Contract negotiations with Montreal fell apart, and the event was moved to Chicago. Montreal leaders decided to create and host the World Out Games instead.

Gay Games organizers admit that the competing games were a cause for worry two years ago, but with opening ceremonies less than two weeks away, there's no reason for concern.

"What we want to get focused on is welcoming participants from these 70 countries and to experience these games," Coady said. "Our ceremony lineups are pretty dang impressive."

CORRECTION:

A story in Thursday's paper included the wrong date for opening ceremonies for Gay Games VII, which are set for 8 p.m. July 15.

Copyright 2006, Chicago Sun-Times, Inc.

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