Photo by nevermindtheend.

Photo by nevermindtheend.

Come 2022, D.C. could see about 15,000 athletes and 100,000 spectators head into town for the 11th Gay Games.

Then again, the competition could happen in Guadalajara or Hong Kong, the other two finalists for the bid to host the sporting and cultural event that promotes sexual diversity. It all depends on what decision The Federation of Gay Games Annual General Assembly makes on October 30 in Paris.

A delegation that includes D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans, Ward 4 Councilmember Brandon Todd, and members of the D.C. Gay Games Bid Committee left for the City of Light on Thursday evening to make the case for the District.

“We hosted the presidential inauguration, we hosted the Pope’s visit—we’re used to hosting big events,” says LaToya Foster, the mayor’s spokesperson.

D.C.’s preparedness is one of the major elements of the bid, which also includes the District’s strong legal protections for LGBTQ residents and its active community of LGBT sports teams and leagues.

Hosting the games “speaks to our D.C. values—inclusivity,” says Foster. Like most of the administration’s initiatives, this one comes with a hashtag: #InspireDC

D.C. lost out in its quest to host the 2024 Olympics, despite trotting out the likes of Bob Dole and Newt Gingrich to make the case for “this town.” The United States Olympic Committee first chose Boston and then, when Beantown dropped out, boosted Los Angeles instead. The International Olympic Committee selected Paris for 2024 and LA for 2028.

Bowser pledged $2 million towards supporting the Gay Games if D.C. wins the bid, which has the full support of the D.C. Council and Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton. Destination DC, a nonprofit funded through D.C.’s hotel occupancy tax along with membership dues, is paying for the cost of the delegation’s trip.

The 2018 games in Paris will include about three dozen sports, including typical summer Olympics fare like cycling, track and field, wintry events like figure skating and ice hockey, and competitions you can’t find at either seasonal Olympics, like roller derby, dancesport, and Pink Flamingo.

The Gay Games were last held stateside in 2014, when Cleveland hosted. Hong Kong would be the first Asian city to host the games.

But D.C. is perhaps the only city where the chair of the council, Phil Mendelson, once called the “Mr. Magoo of D.C. politics,” would sent out a tweet like this before the one-of-a-kind 17th Street High Heel Race.

Filed Under: bowser, gay games, mayor muriel bowser, sports,