2010 Gay Games
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| Host city | Cologne | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Country | Germany | ||
| Motto | Be part of it! | ||
| Nations participating | 70 | ||
| Events | 35 sports | ||
| Opening ceremony | July 31, 2010 | ||
| Closing ceremony | August 7, 2010 | ||
| Main venue | RheinEnergieStadion | ||
| Website |
www | ||
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The 2010 Gay Games (Gay Games VIII) were held in Cologne, Germany from July 31-August 7, 2010.
Bidding process
On 16 March 2005, the Federation of Gay Games (FGG) announced that Cologne, Johannesburg, and Paris were the official candidate cities for Gay Games VIII in 2010. Cologne was elected in the FGG annual meeting in Chicago on 13 November 2005.[1] The 2010 Games marked the first time the Games were held in Germany, and the second time in Europe (Amsterdam hosted in 1998).
Participating nations
Athletes from 70 countries participated at the 2010 Gay Games.[2] The most athletes came from Germany (2,955), the United States (2,215), the United Kingdom (841), the Netherlands (658) and France (524).
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Opening ceremony
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle (who is openly gay) attended the opening ceremony on 31 July 2010.[3]
The Official Anthem for the 2010 Gay Games is "Facing a Miracle" by Taylor Dayne in which she performed live.
Events
The event featured 35 sports, accompanied by community and cultural events throughout Cologne and the surrounding area.
| Event | Location |
|---|---|
| Opening and closing ceremonies | RheinEnergieStadion |
| Synchronized swimming | German Sport University Cologne |
| Softball | Südstadion Sporting Complex |
| Cycling | Köln-Longerich |
| Sailing | Roermond, Netherlands |
The 35 disciplines consisted of Badminton, Basketball, Beach-Volleyball, Bodybuilding (Physique), Bowling, Bridge, Chess, Cycling, DanceSport, Diving, Field Hockey, Figure Skating, Golf, Handball, Ice Hockey, Inline Speed Skating, Martial Arts, Pool-Billiards, Powerlifting, Road Races incl. Marathon, Sailing, Soccer (Football), Softball, Sport Climbing, Sport Shooting, Squash, Swimming, Synchronized Swimming, Table Tennis, Tennis, Track and Field Triathlon, Volleyball, Water Polo and Wrestling.
See also
- Federation of Gay Games, the sanctioning body of the Gay Games
- Gay Games
- LGBT rights in Germany
- List of LGBT-related organizations
References
- ↑ "Cologne, Germany, Announced as Host for 2010 Gay Games" (PDF). Federation of Gay Games. 13 November 2005. Retrieved 2009-02-04.
- ↑ participants information, www.games-cologne.de
- ↑ "Cologne gears up to play and party as host to Gay Games"
External links
- Gay Games VIII official Homepage (English)
- Postcard from Europe: Questioning the necessity of the Gay Games
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