5 600 Registered, Including 1,500 Americans

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Some 5,600 people have now registered for the 1st World Outgames Montréal 2006, which represents just over of third of our total participation objective. With registrants from 89 different countries, the continental breakdown is as follows:

Certain trends are becoming evident in the numbers: steady growth in U.S. registrations, thanks to the increasingly active involvement of American teams; a continuing increase in European registrations with the latest participants coming from southern Europe; a strong delegation from the countries in the Oceania region and the burst of new activity from participants in South America and Africa.

With just over a year to go before the Outgames, Montréal 2006 is about 25% ahead of the numbers for Sydney in 2002 during the same period. It’s also important to note that more than 1,000 people have also begun the online registration process (setting up teams or groups) and that our registration numbers only include those who have paid their registrations in full or in part (i.e. using our instalment payment plan).

And the top ten sports are..

New teams registered

• Colorado Climax (Ice Hockey)
• Vancouver Vixens (Ice Hockey)
• Toronto Lightning (Softball)
• Melbourne Spikers (Volleyball)
• Western Australia (Bowling)
• BGS Poulettes (Volleyball)
• Hardball (Bowling)
• Gay Swim Amsterdam (Swimming)
• Brazil Rowers (Rowing)
• AMBI - Germany (Volleyball)
• Zero Visibility Dragon (Dragon Boat)
• Glamoursharks Australia (Pink Flamingo)
• Amazing Amsterdam (Volleyball)
• Venice Beach Sharks (Volleyball)
• Les maringouines (Volleyball)
  

EuroGames Utrecht 2005
The Montréal sport team was well-represented during the EuroGames Utrecht 2005 with the presence of Sport Director Josée Généreux, sport coordinator Sylvain Guibord and many volunteer members of various 1st World Outgames organising committees.

Our team received a warm welcome from the organisers of and participants in the EuroGames. Not only was it an excellent occasion to provide athletes with information and respond to their questions about the Outgames, it was also a fantastic opportunity to exchange information with the EuroGames organisers and their sports committees.

Congratulations and thank you to the organising committee of this year’s edition of the EuroGames which were, once again, a resounding success!

Photo Gallery of Utrecht 2005 Here >>

Meeting with Equality Dance in Utrecht
Registrations for Dancesport continue to pour in. Over the last few months, the Sport Department has been in regular contact with Equality Dance with the goal of exchanging information and expertise to ensure top quality services and competitions for participants in Dancesport during the Outgames.

Montréal 2006 took advantage of the visit to Utrecht to meet with Mr. Leo van Buitenen, President of Equality dance, and the Outgames will benefit from the collaboration and support of this respected Dutch Dancesport association.

XI FINA World Aquatics Championships
Many members of the organising committees for Montréal 2006’s synchronised swimming events and Pink Flamingo aquatic show are involved in the organisation of the XI FINA World Aquatics Championships, which will be held from 16 to 31 July 2005 in Montréal.

Montréal 2005: The Largest Aquatic Sports Competition This Year !
Montréal 2005 is the largest gathering of Montréal's sporting youth since the 1976 Summer Olympics. The event brings together more that 2,000 athletes from 160 countries in the disciplines of swimming, along with 1,000 team officilas, 300 competition officials and more than 1,200 media representatives. The XI World Championships of the Fédération internationale de natation (FINA) will be presented on five competition site of Montréal's Sainte-Hélène and Notre-Dame islands from 16 to 31 July 2005.

More information here >>

San Francisco
Équipe SF2006 has signed up over one hundred Bay Area residents interested in coming to Montréal in just the last three weeks. Bravo, Equipe SF 2006 and thanks for your hard work!

Edmonton World Masters Games
Montréal 2006 will have an information booth on site at the Edmonton World Masters Games, which will be held from 22 to 31 July 2005 in Alberta, Canada. Éric Pineault, Outgames Project Manager for Promotions and Communications, and a team of volunteers will be on hand to meet athletes and answer questions about the Outgames.

With 27 sports open to sports enthusiasts throughout the world, the World Masters Games are the largest sport festival on earth, with some 23,000 people expected from 82 countries around the world.

The Games are a celebration of the “sport for life” philosophy. The World Masters Games provides a competition opportunity for anyone who does not see age as a barrier to keeping fit, having fun and reaching personal bests.

IGLA 2005 Championships
Montréal 2006 Co-President Mark Tewksbury and GLISA Executive Director Rachel Corbett will be in Atlanta, Georgia, for the IGLA 2005 Championships where Montréal 2006 is an Official 2005 IGLA sponsor. The 2005 Championships will be held from 20 to 25 July 2005, and it will be the biggest gay swimming event of the year featuring swimming, diving, water polo, synchronized swimming and Pink Flamingo.

Choral Festival
About ten choruses have now registered for the Outgames, with groups coming from Australia (the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Choir), from France (the Mélo’Men and Equivox), from Belgium, England, Canada (Ensemble Vocal Extravaganza), the United States and Germany (Berlin Festival Chorus). Organised in collaboration with GALA Choruses and Various Voices, the Outgames Choral Festival will be a unique opportunity to enjoy the vocal talents of LGBT choruses from around the world.

Country Western Dance
From 30 June to 4 July 2005, a representative of the 1st World Outgames Montréal 2006 and several members of the Montréal country western dance club, Club Bolo, were on hand for the 12th Annual IAGLCWDC Convention in Dallas, Texas. The event was organised in collaboration with the Texas Twisters dance club and was a great opportunity for Montréal 2006 to promote the Outgames country western dance competitions to the over 700 participants attending from more than 40 clubs.

Square Dance
Montréal 2006 had a representative at the Star Thru the Silicon Galaxy 22nd Annual IAGSDC [International Association of Gay Square Dance Clubs] Convention to spread the word about the Outgames Square Dance events to the almost 1,000 dancers registered from Canada and the United States. The event was organised in collaboration with the El Camino Reelers dance club and was held in Santa Clara, California, from 1 to 4 July 2005. The Square Dance events for the 1st World Outgames will be organised in collaboration with the Ottawa Date Squares, which is a member of the IAGSDC.

Three Important Agreements
The 1st World Outgames has signed three important agreements for the organisation of “The Right to Be Different” International Conference on LGBT rights:

• with COC, the oldest LGBT rights association in the world, established in 1947 in the Netherlands
• with Homosport Nederland, an organisation well-known for its activities against homophobia in sports
• with ILGA-Europe, an organisation recognised by European institutions, which is active on all fronts in the pursuit of equal rights and political recognition

The agreements ensure the active involvement of these three organisations in developing content and workshops for the Conference, via their responses to the Call for Proposals, which was launched earlier this spring. As well, the three organisations will be promoting the International Conference in Montréal next summer as part of their regular activities.

Mise en marché des produits dérivés
Outgames merchandise will be available through the Montréal 2006 website, on a secure site operated by Integrus. More than 40 articles will be available in the online catalogue for Montréal 2006’s partners. Integrus will also handle deliveries of orders to addresses around the world. The online store has launched initially with a selection of 17 articles and the catalogue will grow over the coming months to include caps, golf shirts, watches, pens, sports gear and clothing. The product line will also change seasonally, adding an even greater choice of Outgames clothing and souvenirs.

A special section will be available for LGBT sports teams with specially-priced products for them to resell to help raise the funds needed to participate in the 1st World Outgames in 2006.

Discover the Outgames e-Store >>

Join Our Team of Volunteers!
The 1st World Outgames Montréal 2006 would like to invite you to become part of our team of volunteers. You can register as a volunteer in a wide range of fun and interesting activities. For example, you might want to volunteer to assist us with:

• Sport Programme: 35 sanctioned sports
• Cultural Programme
• “The Right to Be Different” International Conference on LGBT rights.
• Communications
• Finance
• Opening or Closing Ceremonies
• Logistical Services (security, transportation, accreditation, reception area, commercial activities, or Local Host programme)

Whether you want to volunteer for the challenge of trying new things, to make new friends, to put your professional experience to work for a good cause, to work for the advancement of gay and lesbian rights, or to have the opportunity to meet people from all over the world, we would be pleased to welcome you to our team.

You may register as a volunteer online here >>

Rendez-Vous d'Or
The Organising Committee for the 1st World Outgames Montréal 2006 will be presenting its third fundraising event, the Rendez-Vous, Gold Edition, to benefit the development of LGBT sports. Activties will be held over the Labour Day weekend from 1 to 4 Septembre 2005. Rendez-Vous Gold Edition activities will be organized in collaboration with Fondation Émergence, the Chambre de commerce gaie du Québec (Québec Gay Chamber of Commerce), Équipe Montréal (Montréals’s gay and lesbian sports teams association), la Société de développement commercial du Village (Village Commercial Development Association) and the Borough of Ville-Marie.

This year’s Gold Edition activities will kick off with la Nuit d’Or, a gourmet cocktail dînatoire on Thursday, 1 September, followed by a celebration of lesbian women during the Femmes en tête evening on Friday, 2 September. Then, the Village comes alive for the “Rendez-Vous in the Village” on Saturday and Sunday, 3 and 4 September, when Sainte-Catherine Street will be closed to automobile traffic to make way for sport and cultural demonstrations and activities in the streets in a festive preview of the Outgames next summer. Village bars and restaurants will be creating special outdoor terraces just for the occasion.