Gay Games

Historical Note

The Gay Games was an athletic event and festival first held in San Francisco between August 28 and September 5,1982. The event was founded by Tom Waddell, and it was first referred to as the Gay Olympics as it was modeled after the international Olympic Games. Controversy surrounding the event began when the U.S. Olympic Committee filed a legal injunction that succeeded in preventing use of the word "Olympic" as part of its name. As a result, it was known as the Gay Athletic Games that first year. Four years after the Gay Athletic Games were held in San Francisco, the Gay Games continued the tradition of a gay athletic competitions and festivals held, like the Olympics, in different cities at four-year intervals.

From the guide to the Gay Games Collection, 1982-2010, (ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives)