, . , ‘W , ,__,...., Mr... ,.,,’ .. .,.. ,-.c-,1.» .~—- u... .....-I.-— -~r .a-»-_..w.- we r" r- .-.- rv ~ —~-. — - 7,1? g. 7 V 7 , , .,v J -49-»- s 5 .;,-,.... ~..~...‘ .. _ cont‘d from page E OLY M PIAN EFFORT fashion, to stop chattering when someone entered the throwing circle. but the women were watching while they talked, and gave loud cheers and claps for every improved distance or even a mighty effortfl found it less intimidating and easier to keep my focus when the ‘ noise level was more like a basket- ball game than a tennis match. Although we were compet- ing against each other, everyone was helpful to those with less experience andadmiring to those with more, and all of us valued our comrades’ opin- ions. Just as I found instant compan- ionship with the gays and lesbians who met in Sydney, I experienced a similar bond with the women who shared my sport. " Later I got a taste of the spotlight myself, feeling a real thrill as I faced the track crowd from the medal stand while the loudspeaker announced my name, country, and winning distance. By then I was wearing the boldest Vermont tee shirt I owned, showing the crowd there was at least one from here. As I went _ around the rest of the day with my medals around my neck, I got many positive comments about my state along with congratulations and other conversation. E ' More interesting than com- petition details is how the Gay Games are different from other ath- Télic contests. Ordinarily in straight sports only a rough “manly exuber- ance” is okay to express the joy of victory, while any trace of the homo- erotic is meticulously denied. In these us, schoolteacher ‘ games this part of us is__ treated in a playful, friendly, gentler manner, not as thefimainilfocus of attention but as I a welcome guest, the role I would say it probably plays in our lives. When a gold medalist kiss- es the silver and bronze winners, or they all stand together on the top step in a group hug, it is just fun and no big deal. This is never the attitude in the straight world, no matter how gay-positive they try to be or how much our doings are covered in the straight media. To them we are bizarre, alien, and vaguely offputting, and you know they are careful to keep their distance. By now I no longer saw these people as a huge crowd, but thought of the individuals. Whatever event or nationality, we were all guests at the same party, free to speak to everyone with an orange identity tag around the neck and know that they were as curious about us as we were about them. The long subway_ rides, the many meals in restaurants and cafes, and all the parties and per- formances gave us opportunities to get to know each other. Though I may never see most of these people again, I will remember their conver- sations and personalities for the rest of my life. " ' The most remarkable con- nection I made in Australia was not with a gltba person at all, but with an aborigine woman. It came about on a train platform, when she heard me say I competed in discus, and she spun around and said, “My daughter is a discus thrower.” She went on to tell me that her 13-year-old daughter J was improving with every competi- tion and was regional champion. The daughter was in board- ing school at the coast, and the woman saidlshe visited thegirl one week a month, staying in a tent she pitched in a nearby park. The ladies of the town told her that a mad- woman lived there, and when she said, “That woman is me,” they replied, “But you’re not mad.” “Exactly,” was her response, and truly she appeared very intelligent and articulate. Her daughter’s idol is Cathy Freeman, the aboriginal hero- ine of the Sydney Olympics. The woman I was speaking with had watched that Olympic race with Cathy Freeman’s aunt, who had tick- ets to the stadium but was so uncom- fortable with the crowds that she watched on TV instead. The woman went on to tell me more general things: that the nearby town of Blacktown was where . her people had been rounded up and given poisoned water to drink, that the survivors were given a name and a number and assigned to an outback station like livestock, and that girls were sent away to school until they were sixteen, when they were given “a cow and a convict.” ‘ Up north, she said,’ they still spoke their own tongue. When I asked if she had visited there, she replied, “That is outside my territory. We have our own countries, you know.” She continued to talk to me with her eyes locked on mine, ignor- ing the guys I was with, for about fif- teen minutes, until her train came. She turned on her heel without good- The best part of the Gay Games is the way gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender persons from all over the world can come together in a spirit of respect and celebration. bye, and entered the train which would carry her back to her home in the Blue Mountains. Itinderstand ‘ that it is most unusual for these ancient people totalk to outsiders. Though she gave me no reason, I believe she hoped that there was a sorority of women discus throwers worldwide who might befriend her daughter in future competitions. I‘ will be watching for that kid two Olympics from now. Yes, ldid get to travel around Australia, and had adventures 1 would love to tell about if space and your patience permitted. However, I really need to say that the next Gay Games will be held four » years from now right over the border, in Montreal. Whether you are a bowler or a bodybuilder, a singer or a standup comedian, a pairs dancer or a pole-vaulter, there is a placefor you to show your stuff and time enough to get yourself ready. If you insist that you absolutely have no skills or talent, know that hundreds of volun- teers will -be needed to help it run - smoothly. The costs of attending this" great event will never be cheaper, and should you meet someone truly special you could even invite them home. I So see you at Gay Games 7 VII, summer 2006, in Montreal! V Double-gold medalist” Fran Moravcsik trains in Burlington.