Two Australian cities are bidding for the 2030 Gay Games #PinkInOurLives #PinkPress #GailyNews

Two Australian cities are bidding for the 2030 Gay Games

Melbourne and Perth are two of the seven cities to bid to host the Gay Games in 2030. Every four years since 1982, the Gay Games draws tens of thousands of athletes and spectators to each host city around the world for the tournament of inclusive sport. The race to win the bid to host the event in 2030 is tightening with a list of two dozen interested cities now down to just seven. The Federation of Gay Games has announced they’re reviewing completed bids from Melbourne and Perth, as well as Auckland, New Zealand; Cape Town, South Africa; Denver, United States; Edmonton, Canada; and Taipei, Taiwan. Each city will present their bid at the Federation’s AGM in Washington, DC in October. The FGG will announce three finalist cities in December 2024. H0ng Kong and Guadalajara, Mexico co-hosted the last Gay Games in November 2023. The next Gay Games are in Valencia, Spain in 2026. Sydney was the last Australian city to host the event in 2002.

Pride WA is leading the Perth bid

In Perth, Pride WA confirmed in May that they are leading the WA capital city’s bid. Pride WA CEO Dr Laurie Butterly told a few months ago it was the perfect time for Perth to host the Games. She said the number of LGBTIQA+ sporting clubs in the state had jumped in recent years. “We are so excited to be bidding for the Gay Games 2030. Perth has an incredibly vibrant and diverse LGBTQIA+ sports community that has grown and flourished in recent years,” Laurie said. “This coupled with Perth’s strong sporting culture, great weather and world-class sporting facilities makes Perth the right city, at the right time, for the Gay Games 2030.” In Perth, well over a dozen clubs and groups offer inclusive sports and recreation activities, under the umbrella Team Perth. Laurie said most of Pride WA’s staff and board members participate in multiple teams themselves. “LGBTQIA+ sports are so much more than exercise. It is an incredible community,” she said. “LGBTQIA+ sports is where many of us find our home – including me. Bidding for the Gay Games is a way of sharing our vibrant LGBTQIA+ sports community with the world and continuing to bring us all even closer together.”