WASHINGTON, D.C., March 1, 2017 — Washington, DC's bid to host Gay Games XI has been named one of three finalists for the games to be held in July of 2022. Washington was chosen from among eight bidding cities and will join Guadalajara ( MX ) and Hong Kong ( CN ) in the final round to determine which city will be chosen.
"We are thrilled and honored to have reached the final round of this bid process," said Brent Minor, Chair of the Gay Games Washington DC 2022 ( GGDC2022 ) Bid Committee. "Now, we will intensify our efforts to bring the Games here in 2022. We know that Washington will be a fantastic host for LGBTQ athletes from around the globe and we can't wait to put our city on display for the world."
As a finalist, DC will receive a visit from the Federation of Gay Games ( FGG ) for a site visit in early May. The delegation will visit and inspect all proposed sites for Games events, evaluate the logistics for the Games, and appraise the level of community support for the bid.
"We will host a large community rally to show the FGG how deep the support for this bid is in DC," said Minor. "It's vital to the bid's success to show how much DC wants to host these Games. We want everyone in DC, not just the LGBT community, to join us to support this event."
Following the site visit, the bid committee will be invited to make a formal presentation at the FGG Annual Meeting in Paris this fall.
GGDC2022 is looking for volunteers to help plan and execute the site visit, community rally, and, ultimately if DC is chosen as the host, the Gay Games. For more information on volunteering or the bid, visit www.ggdc2022.org or the bid's Facebook page, facebook.com/ggdc2022.
The Gay Games is held every four years to celebrate the LGBT community through sports and culture. The next Gay Games will be held in Paris, France in 2018. It is anticipated that Gay Games XI would draw 12,000-15,000 competitors and upwards of 80,000-100,000 spectators to the metropolitan Washington region with an economic impact greater than $100 million.
