Cleveland has been tapped as the host city for the 2014 Gay Games, a sports and cultural festival that organizers say attracts as many as 12,000 athletes and generates tens of millions of dollars in spending.
The announcement on the city?s selection was made this week in Cologne, Germany, site of the 2010 games. Organizers said Cleveland won rights to host in 2014 after a year-long bidding process that included Boston and Washington, D.C., as finalists. The Gay Games last were held in the U.S. in 2006, when they were hosted in Chicago.
New York and San Francisco also have played host to the event for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender athletes, which is said to generate up to $80 million in local economic impact.
The Federation of Gay Games said the festival in Cleveland will take place Aug. 9-16, 2014, and feature 30 sporting events, four special events and opening and closing ceremonies.
Gov. Ted Strickland applauded Cleveland?s selection, saying the gathering will be among the largest ever hosted in the state.
?It will further our reputation as a welcoming, inclusive state, which in turn will help attract jobs and foster long-term economic growth,? Strickland said in a release. ?We look forward to the honor and privilege of welcoming people from across the world to compete on Cleveland?s global stage.?
