Sports
She’s the Bomb
Women’s team forms spin-off group from gay football league
At the conclusion of season three of the D.C. Gay Flag Football League, the women players decided to play a little more football on their own. In an effort to recruit more female players into the primarily male league and to get to know one another better, the women formed the D.C. Cherry Bombs.
The League operates under National Gay Flag Football League sanctions which dictate seven-on-seven play on the football field.
“After we started practicing last December, we realized there was potential for creating a team to play at tournaments,” says founder Kristin Horgen. “We came up a little short with funding to compete in the inaugural women’s division at Gay Bowl XII held in Denver last weekend.”
In between their league play and practices with their League teammates, the Cherry Bombs find time to practice on their own either Tuesday nights or Saturday mornings at Garrison Elementary School on Vermont and 11th streets.
“We have had a few scrimmages with other women’s teams from another league that plays under eight-on-eight rules,” Horgen says. “We are hoping to play at the Kelly McGillis Classic in February 2013 in Cocoa Beach.”
That tournament, which operates under the International Women’s Flag Football Association, has drawn teams from Sweden, Denmark, Scotland, Canada, Mexico, Bahamas and all over the United States.
“Over the past few seasons, the talent of the women players has increased along with their numbers,” says JJ Johnson, League president. “We are currently in season five and some of the women players were selected in the draft over the male players.”
When Johnson describes the women players he uses words such as “superstar” and “great hands.”
For 2013, the Cherry Bombs are looking to add some more players to their roster.
“We will be organizing some football clinics for women,” Horgen says, “and hope to attract players of all skill levels.”
Anyone interested in playing with the D.C. Cherry Bombs can reach them at [email protected]. They can also be found on Facebook under D.C. Cherry Bombs.
Congratulations to the two men’s travel teams from the League who traveled to Denver last weekend to compete against teams from across the United States in Gay Bowl XII. The Washington Generals finished fifth and the Washington Admirals finished ninth in the A Division Playoffs.
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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