North American Same-Sex Partner-Dance Association championships

The Federation of Gay Games has at least two very good reasons to support the Philadelphia Liberty Dance Challenge this year. First, because it's produced with the help of FGG member organization Team Philadelphia. Second, because this year it will also host the national championship for the North American Same-Sex Partner-Dance Association, which by the time of the event should be the latest member of the FGG.

Best wishes to organizers and competitors next month in Philly!

Websites:
Dance Challenge HERE
Team Philly HERE
NASSPDA HERE

Getting to Cologne... a little money helps

It's great to have a generous donor... but nothing beats good old-fashioned fundraising. Let's give thanks to these angels, and to the hundreds of volunteers who make it possible for teams from around the world to participate in the Gay Games.

In Philadelphia:

Thanks to a donation from a longtime member of the City of Brotherly Love Softball League, the local LGBT softball association is in the process of organizing a team to send to the 2010 Gay Games in Germany, July 31-Aug. 7.

Jeff Sotland, CBLSL commissioner, said an anonymous donor gave the organization $10,000 last month to be used for sending a contingent to next summer’s event in Cologne. The Gay Games, held every four years, is the largest LGBT sporting event in the world, bringing together LGBT and ally athletes from around the globe to compete for the top titles in myriad sports.

[...]CBLSL has reached out to players and supporters for donations and has so far accumulated another $5,000.

Read more HERE.


In NYC:

Team New York has received a USD 5,000 gift to start its fundraising for uniforms for participants in Gay Games VIII.

Read more HERE.

Honorary Life Members to be named at FGG Annual Meeting: Adelina Santiago

Among the four new Honorary Life Members of the Federation of Gay Games is Adelina Santiago (Philadelphia), here with former sports co-chair Mike ZuZu, who served as Sports Officer on the FGG Board until 2008, and who continues to work with FGG member organisations Team Philadelphia and International Association of Gay and Lesbian Martial Artists. Adelina is being recognised for her diligent and dedicated service at an important time of transition for the FGG, for her management of difficult projects such as the FGG sports guidelines, and her continued commitment to supporting the Gay Games movement, most notably in outreach to young elite athletes.

Philadelphia Falcons to celebrate 20th anniversary

The Falcons are a member of Team Philadelphia, an FGG member organization. We encourage our friends in the Philadelphia area to join the Falcons in their 20th anniversary celebration. Click HERE for more info.

USD 10,000 donation to Team headed to Cologne Gay Games

The City of Brotherly Love Softball League has been given USD 10,000 from an anonymous donor to assist softball players in the league to attend the 2010 Gay Games in Germany, July 31-Aug. 7. The story is reported from PGN - The Philadelphia Gay News.

Click HERE to read the full story on the PGN web site.

CBLSL web site: http://www.cblsl.org/

Click HERE for competition details on Cologne Gay Games Softball.

http://www.games-cologne.com/

Team Philadelphia’s SportsWeek Homophobia in Sports Discussion

Friday 06/05/2009 7-9 PM
Speakers Panel Discussion on Homophobia in Sports

Our Group, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing support the athletic community, will be opening Team Philadelphia’s SportsWeek on June 5th 2009 with a panel discussion focusing on the current environment for LGBT student-athletes at universities nationwide. The attitudes toward LGBT individuals in general society versus attitudes toward the same individuals within the athletic community show a huge discrepancy with the athletic community’s views lagging about ten years behind that of the general population. The group of current and former student-athletes along with their advisory board of the top some of the top scholars in the field, are determined to merge that gap. Members of the Our Group board will discuss current challenges within the athletic community while telling their own personal stories ranging from struggle to triumph and acceptance and focusing on the importance of action within LGBT community as well as support within the athletic community.

Panelists will include:

Sean Smith – Rutgers University ’05, 2005 Big East Swimmer of the Year, Assistant Coach 05-06, 2000 & 2004 Olympic Trials competitor, Our Group Secretary, Out 100 Honoree 2007

Jenelle DeVits – University of New Hampshire ’09, Women’s Basketball team captain 08-09, Walk on freshman, scholarship athlete Jr. and Sr. season, Wildcat award recipient for embodying the goals of a UNH student-athlete, Our Group Treasurer

Anna Aagenes – University of Pennsylvania, Class of 2010
Major: Gender, Society, and Culture, Minor: Spanish
Team Captain Cross Country 2009-Track 2010, Team MVP 2009 Season, 2nd Team All Ivy, NCAA Regional Qualifier 800 m
Co-Chair Penn Athletes and Allies Tackling Homophobia and Co-Chair Queer Student Alliance

Brian Sims - Bloomsburg University '01, Michigan State University Law School '04
Captain 2000 Div. II College Football National Champion Runner-Up, Two-time NCAA Regional All-American
Staff Counsel for Policy & Planning at the Philadelphia Bar Association, Chair of the Gay & Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia

Ted Rybka - Arizona State University (B.A. Russian 1996; Master of Mass Communications 2006), Director of Sports Media for the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), Our Group founding board member

Mark Schuster – moderator
Mark has been an administrator and faculty for over twenty-five years in the Northeast and Midwest. Currently the Senior Dean of Students at Rutgers University, supervises all deans at Rutgers along with 30,000 students and Judicial affairs for 45,000 students. He is also an affiliate faculty psych and women’s and gender studies and has taught Sport and Sexuality classes for 10 years. Mark has a Masters in Sport Psychology and Cultural Studies of Sport from the University of Iowa and his PhD. coursework is in Higher Education Administration, also from Iowa.


Time: 7:00-9:00
Date: Friday, June 5, 2009
Place: Carriage House, 3907 Spruce St. Philadelphia, PA

Details on OurGroup panel discussion at Team Philly Sports Week

Thanks to FGG member Team Philadelphia for offering this event!

If you're in or near Philadelphia, come support these young athletes.

Our Group, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing support the athletic community, will be opening Team Philadelphia’s SportsWeek on June 5th 2009 with a panel discussion focusing on the current environment for LGBT student-athletes at universities nationwide. The attitudes toward LGBT individuals in general society versus attitudes toward the same individuals within the athletic community show a huge discrepancy with the athletic community’s views lagging about ten years behind that of the general population. The group of current and former studentathletes along with their advisory board of the top some of the top scholars in the field, are determined to merge that gap. Members of the Our Group board will discuss current challenges within the athletic community while telling their own personal stories ranging from struggle to triumph and acceptance and focusing on the importance of action within LGBT community as well as support within the athletic community.

Date: June 5, 2009
Time: 7-9 PM
Event Title: Homophobia in Sports Panel Discussion
Description: Our Group, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing support for the athletic community, will be opening Team Philadelphia’s SportsWeek on June 5th 2009 with a panel discussion focusing on the current environment for LGBT student-athletes at universities nationwide.
Location: Carriage House, 3907 Spruce Street, Philadelphia
Cost: FREE
Contact: Adelina Santiago

"Our Group" at Team Philly SportsWeek

At the initiative of the FGG and with the enthusiastic support of FGG member organization Team Philadelphia, "Our Group", a non-profit organization dedicated to providing support the athletic community, will be opening Team Philadelphia’s SportsWeek on June 5th 2009 with a panel discussion at the University of Pennsylvania focusing on the current environment for LGBT student-athletes at universities nationwide.

The attitudes toward LGBT individuals in general society versus attitudes toward the same individuals within the athletic community show a huge discrepancy with the athletic community’s views lagging about ten years behind that of the general population.
The group of current and former student-athletes along with their advisory board of the top some of the top scholars in the field, are determined to merge that gap. Members of the Our Group board will discuss current challenges within the athletic community while telling their own personal stories ranging from struggle to triumph and acceptance and focusing on the importance of action within LGBT community as well as support within the athletic community.

Members of the Gay Games are heartily encouraged to attend this event to exchange their experiences and to support these young athletes.

Click HERE to visit the Our Group website
Click HERE to visit the Team Philly SportsWeek website

Team Philly Sports Week

FGG Member organization Team Philadelphia is proud to bring you SportsWeeks 2008 from June 1 thru 8. Our goal for SportsWeek during the past ten years has been to showcase Philadelphia gay sports teams so that gay and lesbian athletes in the area can see the many opportunities available to them.

The GLBT sports community in Philadelphia offers a healthy and friendly environment in which to participate and many of our area teams continue to represent Philadelphia in international and national level competitions in such sports as swimming, soccer, wrestling, and running, to name a few.

During the past three years, Team Philadelphia has been able to expand our SportsWeek event to include competition events that involve local area athletes as well as gay and lesbian athletes and their teams from up and down the East Coast. This year’s showcase competition is the ReGAYtta Tournament on Saturday, June 7th. This event is marked by our 1st LGBTQ dragon boat race in Philadelphia during the Independence Dragon Boat Regatta festival. Our boat will be represented by participants from Philadelphia's finest gay sports teams!

Team Philadelphia has been sponsoring this week long event leading up to Pride Weekend for many years and we are excited that many of our local sports teams return each year to participate in this event. So come on out and enjoy the Spring weather in Philadelphia and watch some fierce competition. And don't forget YOU CAN PARTICIPATE.

City Team Profile: Team Philadephia

If you are looking for some fun in Philly, check out Team Philadelphia. Team Philadelphia lists events by day or by team on their web site.

Team Philadelphia is the umbrella group under which the various gay and lesbian sports teams and individual athletes in the Delaware Valley come together to provide a healthy outlet for all members of the community. Throughout the year, Team Philadelphia sponsors many events in order to raise funds to organize and support these athletes as the Delaware Valley 's official delegation to the quadrennial Gay Games.

Team Philadelphia is planning to attend Gay Games VIII in Cologne, Germany in 2010.

http://www.teamphiladelphia.org/