Sport for Social Inclusion Award
This category is for:
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Projects that use sport to address issues of social, ethnic, physical, economic
or gender exclusion
CRITERIA SPECIFIC TO THIS CATEGORY
In addition to following Beyond Sport’s Five Basic Principles, the entry must show:
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That the project has targeted individuals and communities that have been
significantly isolated from society and has successfully demonstrated
engagement of that group
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That the project has a lasting effect on the wider community beyond the
direct beneficiaries of the programme
GENERAL CRITERIA
In addition to the above, the entry must show:
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That the project has been operational for a minimum of two years (in
relation to the date of your Awards entry)
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That the project has effectively used partnerships
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That the project has well-supported evidence of change through a
monitoring and evaluation structure
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That your targeted audience has played a role in the design of your
programme
ENTRY FORM SECTION 1 – GENERAL INFORMATION
Project title:
Gay Games
Parent organisation:
Federation of Gay Games (FGG)
(sanctioning body of The Gay Games)
Year organisation was founded:
1982
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Reach of project (local, regional, national, global):
Global
Project host continent:
Australia, Europe, North America
Project host nation:
USA (Cleveland & Akron, OH: 2014, Chicago, IL:
2006, NY, NY: 1994, San Francisco, CA: 1986,
1982), Germany (Cologne: 2010), Australia (Sydney:
2002), Netherlands (Amsterdam: 1998), Canada
(Vancouver: 1990)
Sport(s):
Each Gay Games can host up to 36 different sports
which have included: Badminton, Basketball, Beach
Volleyball, Billiards-Pool, Bodybuilding, Bowling,
Cheer, Cycling (Mountain & Road), DanceSport,
Darts, Diving, Flag Football, Field Hockey, Figure
Skating, Golf, Handball, Ice Hockey, In-line Speed
Skating, Marathon/Half Marathon, Martial Arts, Open
Water Swim, Petanque, Powerlifting, Racquetball, 5K
And 10K Road Races, Rock Climbing (Sport
Climbing), Roller Derby, Rowing, Rugby (Union),
Sailing, Soccer/Football, Softball, Squash,
Swimming, Synchronized Swimming, Table Tennis,
Tennis, Track And Field, Triathlon, Volleyball, Water
Polo, Wrestling And Grappling.
There is also a companion Cultural Festival that
includes such disciplines as Band, Orchestra, Choral,
Cheerleading, Visual Arts, and other disciplines
recommended by the host country.
Contact person name:
Leviathen Hendricks
Address:
20 Stevens Avenue
Town:
London
Country:
United Kingdom
Postcode:
E9 6RX
Telephone number:
+44 7702 799618 (UK)
Email address:
Leviathen.Hendricks@gaygames.net
Website:
www.gaygames.org
Provide the story of how your project got started (200
words max):
Tom Waddell, a U.S. army officer, medical doctor,
and 1968 Olympic Games decathlete, is best known
for founding the Gay Games, a sports event modeled
on the Olympics for athletes of all sexual
orientations.
In early 1980s America, LGBT athletes were a
hidden and marginalised community within the
greater marginalised and beleaguered LGBT
community. Being gay and being an athlete was an
either-or proposition. During this period, Waddell
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attended a San Francisco gay bowling competition,
which inspired him to organize a gay sports event
modeled on the Olympics. He took up the cause of
the “Gay Olympics” by traveling across the country to
drum up support.
After a long-fought law suit from the US Olympic
Committee over the use of the word “Olympic,” the
event was renamed the Gay Games prior to its start.
The case ended up in the US Supreme Court.
Since athletes marched into the first Opening
Ceremony in San Francisco’s Kezar Stadium in
1982, the Gay Games have built an international
legacy of changing cultural, social and political
attitudes towards LGBT people across the globe.
They have empowered tens of thousands with the
transforming benefits of sports and culture
participation.
ENTRY FORM SECTION 2 – DESCRIPTION OF YOUR
PROJECT’S MODEL
(Refer to the Beyond Sport Five Basic Principles for more
information on the ‘Model’)
Provide a mission statement of your project (In a single
sentence)
What social issue is your project addressing, what is the
context in which you are operating and how are you
using sport to do this? (200 words max)
Tip: Provide information on the social issues specific to
where your project is based and what research and
consultation you have done to inform your knowledge
and planning
The Gay Games promotes equality, diversity, and
respect through the organisation of the
premiere international LGBT and gay-friendly sports
and cultural quadrennial event;.guided by the
founding principles of Participation, Inclusion, and
Personal Best.
Around the world, homosexuality is illegal in 78
countries. In five of those countries being
homosexual is punishable by death.
The Gay Games have been held in countries which,
arguably have some of the best LGBT rights. With up
to 13,000 LGBT+ participants from up to 60 countries
coming together in a host city, the Games provide a
template for what an open, authentic, and respected
life can be like. It's a liberating and affirming
experience that has elevated people out of a
negative mind-set of low self-esteem and depression
all too often enforced by the societies they live in.
An integral component of the Gay Games is its
scholarship programme, which has existed for over
17 years. The programme’s goal is to bring LGBT
people from under-represented (and often
homophobic) countries and regions to participate in
the Gay Games – and then to return home and help
organize LGBT sport and cultural activities; and
many participants have been spurred on to make
revolutionary changes.
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Participants at our 2001 AGM in Johannesburg
organised an Inter-African Football Tournament with
teams from Windhoek, Namibia and Soweto. There
were efforts to organise an African Gay Games
following our 2008 Cape Town meeting.
What is innovative about your project? (200 words
max)
Tip: Provide information about how you engage
participants in the project
The Gay Games Scholarship Programme is
designed to expose financially challenged people
from countries where they typically experience
hostility to their efforts to participate in sport and
culture competitions as out LGBT people. The
Scholarship Programme is a collaboration between
the Games host city and the FGG, starting with a set
of diversity goals that address target criteria (country,
demographics, income) and how applicants will be
selected. Funding is provided by the FGG and the
host, as well as donations from participants and
supporters of the Gay Games.
At Gay Games 9, scholarships focused on Russia,
which was imposing censorship on LGBT people. At
the conclusion of the Scholarship Programme one
Russian woman, who had lived with a family for the
week of the Games, said “I was very apprehensive
about staying with a straight couple in Cleveland
because of my experience with straights in Russia.
But they accepted me like a daughter, welcoming me
into their home and lives. This is so far from our
experience in Russia, where our families often shun
us and our sport events are shut down by the
government. THIS is what we should aim for – open
participation and acceptance by all.”
Describe your participants (e.g. economic background,
gender, ethnicity, age), including how many you work
with, why you have specifically targeted them and how
you engage them in the project (200 words max)
Tips: Include how you initially engage participants that
are in need of what your project provides and how you
ensure frequent and regular participation. Also explain
how you ensure that your project takes an inclusive
approach. If your project has specific reasons to be
exclusive to a particular target group, please detail your
rationale here
At the past nine Gay Games, participants have come
from 84 different countries – United Arab Emirates to
Uganda; Liberia to Lithuania: and Jamaica to Japan.
At each quadrennial event ages have ranged from 18
to 99; gay, bisexual, straight and trans* and CISgendered. While the majority of participants will
usually come from middle and working classes of
economically developed nations, the Gay Games
operates a robust Scholarship Programme which has
brought hundreds of athletes to our events.
For Gay Games 9 in Cleveland + Akron, nearly
US$100,000 was raised to bring deserving
participants to the event. 21 full scholarships were
awarded to individuals from Croatia, Russia, South
Africa, Macedonia, Brazil, Nepal, and Slovenia; and
22 partial scholarships to people from Kazakhstan,
Argentina (a team of 20 football players), and the
Philippines. Overall, there were hundreds of
scholarship applications, most of which had to be
denied due to funding.
We send our quarterly newsletter Participate to our
entire mailing list (28,000) of past participants so our
audience is kept up to date, and we are active on
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social media.
We have a Diversity committee that focuses on
inclusion of trans people, women, the disabled and
‘non-Western’ participants.
Explain what happens day-to-day in your project
and/or what is the step-by-step experience for
participants (200 words max)
Tip: Include your curriculum, weekly schedule and/or the
steps your participants experience throughout the project
The Gay Games take place every four years over the
span of about 7-8 days in July or August (except
when the event took place in November in Sydney,
Australia).
Participation fees are kept as low as possible. Teams
and individuals often start planning years in advance.
There is a hosted housing programme and
favourable rates are negotiated with local hotels.
Hundreds of volunteers from the local area (both gay
and straight) will have been inducted. Free public
transportation for all participants for the duration of
the Gay Games is standard.
Participants visit the Registration Centre to get their
credentials, schedule updates, transportation pass.
Events typically start on a Saturday with the
International Rainbow Memorial Run in the morning
and the Opening Ceremony that evening. Sport and
cultural events continue at different venues and times
around the metropolitan area until the following
Saturday. with a Closing Ceremony that includes
passing the Gay Games flag from the current host,
back to the FGG, and then on to the next host.
Naturally there are medal ceremonies and a big
closing party to celebrate.
Restaurants, shops and local businesses have
extended hours to cater for the groundswell of
visitors.
ENTRY FORM SECTION 3 – DESCRIPTION OF YOUR
PROJECT’S IMPACT
(Refer to the Beyond Sport Five Basic Principles for more
information on the ‘Impact’)
How do you measure the impact of your project? (200
words max)
Surveys are done among participants to measure
satisfaction with the Gay Games as well as to
determine their economic impact.
Tip: Reflect on your mission statement and provide an
evidence baseline; show what indicators you use to
measure change; note any monitoring and evaluation
approaches or tools you use
At 2014’s Gay Games 9 in Cleveland + Akron,
satisfaction results were at record high levels in
several key areas: Accreditation (92%); Opening
Ceremony (88%); Closing Ceremony (74%); Sports
Programme (87%); Sports Venues (78%); Sports
Conditions (88%); Cultural Festival (86%); Cultural
Venues (89%). 1,452 people took this survey.
We also conduct a periodic “Image of the Gay
Games” survey that measures more global issues
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pertaining to the event. This survey takes the pulse of
respondents regarding the current and future
directions of the quadrennial event. This includes the
relative emphasis on sports, cultural events,
conferences, parties, and other affiliated events.
Questions about event duration, registration fees,
and site selection are also asked in this survey.
Another measure of impact is how many cities have
bid to host Gay Games. Official bids have increased
steadily for each cycle (14 cities expressed interest to
host GG9). In addition to the nine cities that’ve won
hosting rights for the Gay Games, ten others have
bid, several more than once: Atlanta, Dallas, Los
Angeles, Montreal, Toronto, Johannesburg, London,
Limerick, Boston, and Washington, D.C.
What are the results of your project’s impact, in
numerical terms, on the participants? (200 words max)
Tip: Do not only include the number of participants who
have completed your programme; include outcomes
against your mission statement. Be sure that the numbers
you provide are in context – ie school graduation rates,
attitude and behavioural change
We’re near completion of a global inventory of LGBT
sports teams. We’ve counted 603 in the Americas
and estimates for Europe are up around 300 with the
Rest of World at over 50. While no comparative data
is available, a great number of these teams (and
leagues and organisations like Team Chicago,
International Gay & Lesbian Aquatics or Pink
Hockey) have begun as a direct result of the Gay
Games; either to prepare for them or after
participating.
The Gay Games Scholarship Programme has
expanded this result. The Russian LGBT Sport
Federation, for example, was founded by a
scholarship recipient who was in the closet at home a
month after the 2010 Cologne Gay Games. This
group now has 27 branches nationwide and
organised the Russia Open Games as a parallel
event to the Sochi Olympics that was designed to test
Russia’s law banning “propaganda of nontraditional
sexual relationships to minors”
A South African scholarship recipient in the 2006
Chicago Gay Games organised Kwa Zulu Natal
LGBT Recreation, which has allowed women to train
for and participate in running and football events.
Both of these organisations also joined the FGG’s
General Assembly.
What has been the impact of your project on the wider
community? (200 words max)
Tip: Include how the programme has impacted others
aside from those directly taking part in the programme –
ie parental feedback, teacher feedback, crime statistics,
community member feedback
FGG – 2015 Beyond Sport for Social Inclusion entry form
We serve the interests of the thousands of athletes
who compete in our events, but also the countless
LGBT athletes competing in mainstream sport,
particularly those who cannot speak for themselves
because they remain closeted, often because of legal
bans on homosexuality.
One of the most tangible legacies of the Gay Games
has been financial. 2014’s Gay Games 9 earned a
net profit, and nearly US$150,000 was donated to
two LGBT funds in Northeast Ohio. Specifically,
US$120,000 was donated to the Gay Games LGBT
Legacy Fund at the Cleveland Foundation, and
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US$27,000 was donated to the Gay Community
Endowment Fund of the Akron Community
Foundation.
Kent State University conducted a study which
determined the economic impact of the 20,000
participants and attendees at Gay Games 9 was
US$52.1 million. The event led to an increase in
wage earnings of roughly US$20.6 million, which
resulted in the equivalent of 726 new full-time jobs in
the local economy.
A Gay Games 9 study by Dr. Nigel Jarvis of
CoSTaLS at Brighton University (UK) “revealed a
range of economic, tourism, volunteer, and arts
related legacies; however, the socio-political aspects
may be the biggest legacy.”
Provide a story that best demonstrates your project’s
impact (200 words max)
The Russian LGBT Sport Federation was founded by
inspired athletes a month after they took part in the
2010 Cologne Gay Games. Today it has 27 branches
nationwide.
Tip: This is your opportunity to bring to life your project
and its social impact
The passage in June 2013 of a Russian law banning
“propaganda of nontraditional sexual relationships to
minors” led to calls to boycott the Sochi Olympics.
The Russian LGBT Sport Federation responded by
holding a gay-friendly “Olympics” in Moscow just
three days after the Winter Olympics in Sochi. These
“Open Games” were for athletes of any orientation
and consisted of eight events. They were subjected
to bomb threats and four venues cancelling at the last
minute; but they persevered.
“By developing LGBT sport, we can improve the
standing of the LGBT community in our country,” one
of the organisers said. “Our society has a very onesided image of gays” and the Open Games helped to
change that. The organisers believed that sport could
be the perfect cover for gay men and lesbians to
gather under.
The Russian Open Games were designed to show
the world that “we are normal people,” said
Konstantin Yablotsky, president of the Russian LGBT
Sport Federation, a non-government group. “We are
good people. We play sports. We win medals.”
ENTRY FORM SECTION 4 – DESCRIPTION OF YOUR
PROJECT’S SUSTAINABILITY
(Refer to the Beyond Sport Five Basic Principles for more
information on ‘Sustainability’)
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Describe how you currently resource your project and
how you plan to sustain it over the next two years (200
words max)
Tip: Include resources received in the form of funding, inkind support, leadership, kit, equipment, etc.
Gay Games are funded through participants’ general
and sport registration fees (approx ⅓), corporate
sponsorships (~⅓), governmental grants (~⅓),
personal donations, merchandising sales, and ticket
sales. Registration for Paris 2018 will open up in
May 2106 and continue till July 2018. Gay Games
receive in-kind support in the form of, but not limited
to: venue rental, participant transportation costs,
administrative and legal expenses, marketing, media
rights, and sporting equipment and supplies.
The Federation of Gay Games’ financial funding for
our current projects (not the production of the
Games) are received from membership fees, a
percentage of the Paris Gay Games X general
registration fee, Gay Games XI bidding process, and
personal donations. Our financial income projections
for the next two years are US$60,000 and
US$120,000 respectively.
The Federation of Gay Games leadership consists of
a volunteer board of twenty. Board members are
elected for two year terms and half of the board is
elected each year to allow for consistency among the
board from year to year. In addition to the Board, we
receive in-kind management support from an outside
consultant. Our member organisations provide
administration and operational support for all FGG
projects and initiatives.
Winning a Beyond Sport Award means receiving
funding from Comic Relief and a Business Support
Package. Describe how you would make use this to
develop your organisation or project, if you won (200
words max)
Tip: Keep in mind the Business Support Package includes
strategic consultancy, value in kind on sports surfaces,
key introductions and advisory from Beyond Sport
Our Board has worked together to complete this
application, and the process has already been
engaging with useful questions. For that we thank
you! But we are keen to ramp up our efficacy and
impact. One key tool for doing this may be to hire a
staff member. While the financial award may not be
enough to cover this, we would use the funding to
ensure we can carry out the action plan developed
through the strategic consultations.
We would like to increase our outreach by attending
more international sport events (LGBT and
otherwise) and hosting conferences that will focus on
development ideas either for under-represented
segments of our communities (for example women,
people of colour, trans*, disabled athletes, young
people).or about LGBT athletes at “mainstream”
major sporting events.
We would like to increase our fundraising capacity for
our scholarship programme to make the Gay Games
experience possible for more people from
economically and socially challenged locations and
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circumstances.
We would like to be able to offer infrastructure
support to burgeoning LGBT sports teams and
movements, particularly in Africa, Asia, and South
America.
We would like to increase our capacity for
campaigning globally for LGBT inclusion in sport.
Describe your partnership approach and the type of
relationships you have set up (200 words max)
Tip: Do not list your funders. This is an opportunity for
you to describe your more creative partnerships set up
with key community organisations, other NGOs,
development agencies, health centres, schools, etc.
To successfully fight for equality in sport and equality
through sport, we are constantly working in
partnership with others; it’s crucial.
As an assembly-led federation we naturally work with
our members to help promote and foster their work
and events. Our membership (53 organisations) is
growing though, so we also engage with nonmembers with a view to bringing them into the fold. In
the past few months, we’ve had membership interest
from sports organisations in Hong Kong, Scotland,
and Israel.
The FGG is a founding member of the LGBT Sports
Coalition, co-sponsored by Nike, Athlete Ally,
Go!Sports, and Transathlete.com. We're also
founding members of Pride House International, a
group of past and future organisations promoting
Pride Houses in conjunction with international megasport events.
We were a leading collaborator in the global outcry
for human rights at the Sochi Olympics. We even met
with IOC President Thomas Bach to lobby (with
eventual success) for changes to their Principle 6.
We have official partnerships with 138 organisations.
(see gaygames.org/wp/about-the-fgg/structure-of-thefederation/partners/).
We regularly write about news and developments
from our partners on our website blog and promote
these stories heavily through social media and our
“Participate” newsletter.
ENTRY FORM SECTION 5 – DESCRIPTION OF YOUR
PROJECT’S ABILITY TO SHARE EXPERTISE
(Refer to the Beyond Sport Five Basic Principles for more
information on ‘Share’)
Winners of the Beyond Sport Awards are expected to
share their learnings. What is the single biggest
practical insight from your project that you could share
with other initiatives to aid their development? (200
words max)
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It’s important to recognise, foster and support
diversity. When you promote diversity and inclusion,
it can be contagious. Real inclusion will create better
initiatives and contribute to building better societies.
While our event may be targeted towards LGBT
communities, we recognise and celebrate the value
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Tip: These will be categorised and made available for the
attendees of the Beyond Sport Summit; ensure they are
practical, relevant, and tangible
of diversity to gain new participants and keep them
coming back. To take part in the Gay Games you
don't have to be gay, you don't have to be good, you
just have to be over 18. Meeting people with different
backgrounds, nationalities, languages, abilities,
sexualities, genders, ages and life experiences is part
of what draws people to the Gay Games.
One of our favourite recent participants was Ida
Keeling, a 99-year-old African-American great-great
grandmother who established the world record in the
100m Track & Field event at Gay Games 9 – a
nonagenarian straight ally woman of colour running
to combat arthritis and deal with the pain of losing
two sons to violence. That kind of diversity enriches
the experience of everyone connected.
Recent Gay Games have included events for
wheelchair users and the star of GG9’s figure skating
programme was blind participant Stash.
Without radically reflecting the world, organisations
will fail to maintain relevance.
ENTRY FORM SECTION 6 – REFERENCES
Please provide the details of two references
Name Thomas Nobbe
Organisation Cleveland Special Events Corporation/Gay
Games 9
Position Executive Director
Email address Thomas.nobbe19@gmail.com
Tel number +1 (216) 299 6164
Relationship to your organisation Head of the GG9
organising group
Name Toby Butterfield
Organisation Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz PC
Position Trademark attorney
Email address tbutterfield@fkks.com
Tel number +1 (212) 826 5567
Relationship to your organisation Has done legal
work for us.
ENTRY FORM SECTION 7 – SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Please upload the following supporting information to the website in addition to your completed entry form:
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Your organisation logo [Uploaded]
Your Child Protection Policy [The Gay Games are for participants aged 18 years and older]
One photo that best showcases your project [Chicago Opening ceremony]
One video that best showcases your project (optional) [GG9 Montage video ]
One piece of supporting documentation that describes the impact of your project (optional) Shamey’s
article
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