Sports
Twisting and twirling
Local gay daredevils can get an adrenaline rush on the trapeze

MYOB Adventures is offering flying trapeze lessons on two Saturdays in February at the Navy Yard. (Photo courtesy of Kevin Majoros)
Even though the days have been cold and the nights even colder, the local LGBT sports groups are still finding ways to be active.
“Forget fear – Worry about the addiction” is the motto for MYOB Adventures series of flying trapeze lessons at the Navy Yard. The next sessions are scheduled for Feb. 12 and 19. Each session is $80 and is limited to 10 people. Contact [email protected] for more information.
MYOB Adventures is also offering a snow tubing day trip at Whitetail Ski Resort on Jan. 29. The package will include luxury bus transportation, two hours of snow tubing and lunch. Contact [email protected] to sign up.
The D.C. Ice Breakers will be joined by the Federal Triangles Soccer Club on Feb. 16 from 8:15 to 9:15 p.m. at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington, Va. Skating is $8 and skate rental is $3. After the skate, join the group at Bailey’s Pub for socializing. Details can be found here.
The D.C. Gay Flag Football League (DCGFFL) has just closed registration for its spring season which begins Feb. 6. The second season registration topped out at a jaw-dropping 180 players. Members play at the Carter Barron fields and you can still get on the wait list at www.dcgffl.org.
Join the Adventuring Outdoors Group for its annual trek to Pennsylvania for the Gettysburg Battlefield Hike on Sunday. The hike through Gettysburg will feature the area northwest of town where the first day’s battle was fought on July 1, 1863, an action ending with a deceptively convincing Rebel triumph that planted the seeds for their ultimate defeat.
Total length of the hike should not exceed 8 miles over gently rolling and potentially icy and/or muddy terrain. Bring beverages, lunch and about $12 for fees. The group will carpool at 9 a.m. from the Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro Station and will be back by dinnertime. Contact [email protected] for more information.
The Adventuring Outdoors Group is also offering a much shorter hike on Jan. 30. The hike at Scott’s Run Nature Preserve is near the Capital Beltway’s American Legion Bridge. Total length of the hike will not exceed 3 miles and will go past the waterfall on Scott’s Run and along the Potomac River as well as up and down the palisades of the Potomac. Bring beverages, lunch and $3 trip fee as well as fees for non-drivers. The group will at 10 a.m. at a place to be determined near the Pentagon City Metro to carpool to the site and will return by 3:30 p.m. Contact [email protected].
The organizers of the Capital Queer Prom will be hosting a Wizards Night Out on Feb. 5 versus the Atlanta Hawks at 7 p.m. Tickets are $32 with $10 of each ticket going to the Capital Queer Prom which helps benefit the Capital Youth Alliance. The after party is at Nellies Sports Bar. Tickets can be purchased here.
Team D.C. is hosting a casino night on Feb. 19 from 9 p.m. to midnight at Buffalo Billiards. Members will be joined by the Washington Wetskins (water polo), Federal Triangles Soccer Club, D.C. Gay Flag Football, District of Columbia Aquatics Club (swimming), D.C. Strokes (rowing), Capital Area Rainbowlers Association (bowling) and the D.C. Ice Breakers (ice skating).
There will be blackjack tables, poker tables and a billiards tournament. Buffalo Billiards is located at Dupont Circle where you will find four 10-foot TV screens, 40 flat screens, seven dart boards, 18 pool tables, nine table shuffleboards, three full bars and lots of great food. Check it out at buffalobilliards.com/dc.
Iran and Egypt on Friday faced off during the World Cup’s “Pride Match” in Seattle.
Iran is among the handful of countries in which consensual same-sex sexual relations remain punishable by death. Discrimination and persecution based on sexual orientation and gender identity is commonplace in Egypt.
Friday’s match coincided with Pride weekend in Seattle. The Egyptian Football Association and the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran both objected to playing in the “Pride Match.”
Egypt and Iran tied 1-1.
FIFA, for its part, allowed Pride flags inside the stadium during the match.
“The FIFA World Cup 2026 is an inclusive event that welcomes people from all backgrounds,” a FIFA spokesperson told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Fans of all sexual orientations and gender identities are welcome at matches and events. General statements of human rights, including rainbow flags and other flags representing sexual orientation and gender identity, are permitted under the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Stadium Code of Conduct and may be displayed inside stadiums provided they are used in a manner consistent with the code.”
Human Rights Watch welcomed FIFA’s decision to allow Pride flags inside the stadium. Outright International, a global LGBTQ and intersex rights group, distributed Pride flags in Seattle on Friday, which was Pride Match Day.
“Visibility matters,” said Outright International Executive Director Maria Sjödin. “Pride is now being celebrated in more than 100 countries, including this weekend in Seattle. For many LGBTIQ people, seeing a Pride flag in public is a reminder that they are not alone, and that their rights and dignity are recognized.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino earlier this year told Die Weltwoche, a Swiss magazine, that “there will be no ‘Pride Match’ at the (FIFA) World Cup.”
“There will be a FIFA World Cup match in Seattle, and on the same day, events organized by external organizations will be taking place in the city,” said Infantino. “But that has nothing to do with the match itself.”
Peter Tatchell, a long-time LGBTQ activist from the U.K. who is director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, was among those who traveled to Seattle for Friday’s match. Tatchell accused FIFA of not vetting World Cup teams — specifically Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, Senegal, Qatar, Tunisia, Morocco, Iraq, Uzbekistan, and Algeria — over whether they would allow gay players.
“FIFA is protecting LGBT+ visibility in the stands while failing to protect LGBT+ players on the pitch,” said Tatchell.
The Baltimore Orioles will take on the Washington Nationals on Friday, June 26 at 7 p.m. for Pride Night at Oriole Park.
The first 15,000 fans will receive an exclusive Pride Night Orioles jersey. The Washington Blade is a media sponsor of this event.
To purchase tickets, visit Orioles.com/Tickets.
Sports
Minor league team in York, Pa., forfeits Pride Night game after some players refuse to wear special jersey
City is roughly 20 miles north of Md. border
An independent minor league baseball team says it is forfeiting a game because some of its players refused to wear a special Pride Night jersey.
The Atlantic League Pro Baseball’s York Revolution were planning to hold their 11th annual Pride Night event Thursday for a game against the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs.
But the Revolution announced the day of the game that it wouldn’t be played. York is about 20 miles north of the Maryland line. The Blue Crabs play in Waldorf.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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