Cowboys miss Cologne but could be set for Cleveland

The Cleveland Synergy Foundation has ramped up its bid to host the 2014 Gay Games by petitioning the Federation of Gay Games to include rodeo on the list of accepted sports.

The four cities shortlisted to host the next Gay Games -” Miami, Boston, Washington and Cleveland -” have started their attempts to out-wow judges, in an effort to secure the prestige and revenue that the games can bestow on a city.

Adding to the strength of their bid, the Cleveland Synergy Foundation, a not-for-profit tourism group, has secured a $10,000 sponsorship deal from the Akron/Summit Convention and have also successfully campaigned to have rodeo incorporated in the games.

The move was welcomed by the International Gay Rodeo Association and may go some way towards re-invigorating the push to develop a gay rodeo in Australia.

The International Gay Rodeo Association is very proud to partner with the Cleveland Synergy Foundation to include amateur gay rodeo as a sporting event at the Gay Games and thankful to the foundation for their work in having rodeo approved, said a spokesman for the IGRA said.

To our knowledge a bidding city has never petitioned the FGG to add an additional sport. But this sport will bring thousands of new athletes to the Gay Games and will help with our effort to be as inclusive as possible, so that the Cleveland Games represent the same diversity that the GLBT community represents.

Australia does not currently have its own gay rodeo association, although efforts were made last year to establish a gay rodeo in Lismore. The idea petered out due to a lack of interest, but perhaps the possibility of competing on an international scale will entice gay cowboys from around the country to represent Australian mustering skills.

info: For more information on the Gay Games go to www.gaygames.com.