COMING OUT OF THE LOCKER ROOM: A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE GAY GAMES by
Lyndon Cudlitz, Training & Education Coordinator
In eighth grade, as rumors of my bisexuality began to spread around the school, I started waiting until others were done in the locker room before I changed for lacrosse practice. Being late to the field meant I was played less. Internalizing the bi-phobic messages around me, I didn’t see myself as being as worthy of athletic opportunity as the other students. I stopped trying. Many LGBTQ people of all ages have stories of struggling to be accepted on sports teams, not being allowed to compete in gendered divisions that matched their identities, or giving up sports all together to avoid bullying and discrimination. In an effort to provide more equitable opportunities for LGBTQ athletes to compete and as a “vehicle of change,” former Olympian Dr. Tom Waddell first conceived of the Gay Olympics in 1980. By 1982 the first Gay Games were being held in San Francisco at Kezar Stadium. The original name was the Gay Olympics, but just three weeks before the event the organizers were sued by the International Olympic Committee over
rights to the name. The lawsuit, San Francisco Arts & Athletics, Inc. v. United States Olympic Committee, was the subject of the 2009 documentary Claiming the Title: Gay Olympics on Trial. According to the website for this year’s Gay Games IV (www.gg9cle.com), Waddell wrote, “We need to discover more about the process of our sexual liberation and apply it meaningfuIIy to other forms of liberation. The Gay Games are not separatist, they are not exclusive, they are not oriented to victory, and they are not for commercial gain. They are, however, intended to bring a global community together in friendship, to experience participation, to elevate consciousness and self-esteem, and to achieve a form of cultural and intellectual synergy.... We are involved in the process of altering opinions whose foundations lie in ignorance. We have the opportunity to take the initiative on critical issues that affect the quality of life and we can serve in a way that makes all people the beneficiary.” Today the Gay Games are the world’s largest event for LGBTQ athletes. Held every four years, the Games have
bounced across the globe, with destinations including Vancouver, Amsterdam, Sydney, and Cologne. The Games provide a full week of cultural events and over 35 sport competitions, from basketball to bodybuilding. At the Gay Games IV in Cleveland this August, I was moved to tears while watching seven pairs of men dance the waltz during one of the dance competitions. It was such an honor to witness this rare sight, with an entire room in full support. When I showed up for my own two-day competition, it felt more like a room of people in solidarity with one another than it did a room of competitors. Certainly, I came to compete. But it was the sense of community that made the experience worth the trip from Albany. Congratulations to my fellow competitor, the Men’s Advanced Bouldering bronze medalist, who shares his Gay Games experience on page 7. The Pride Center congratulates all of the Capital Rgion athletes who competed in Cleveland this summer in Rock Climbing, Soccer, Ice Hockey, Triathlon, and more!
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