Despite a worldwide economic crisis, more than 5,500 participants from 92 countries attended the eight-day 2009 World Outgames—and organizers delivered a money-making event.
The board of directors of the Gay and Lesbian International Sports Association ( GLISA ) announced in January that the Copenhagen 2009 Outgames declared a profit of DKK 1.2 Million ( $234,000 USD ) .
"From day one, we had as ambition to come out with a positive [ financial ] result," said Uffe Elbaek, CEO of Copenhagen World Outgames. "So we never promised more that we could deliver.
"There is not only one reason, but many, [ that the Copenhagen event was a financial success ] . Some of [ the reasons are ] , it was the right mix of a highly professional staff, hired not because of their relationship to the LGBT community, but because what they have done before as project managers, and lots of committed activists. This combination of 'keep your mind calm and your heart open' is maybe the most important reason, that the Outgames in Copenhagen was such a success."
The profits from the 2009 Outgames will be allocated to charitable LGBT sports, cultural and human rights-related purposes, in accordance with the articles of the association, said GLISA officials.
Elbaek said it is up to the mayor of culture in Copenhagen, Pia Allerslev, and other members of city council, to decide specifically where the money goes.
So what does this mean for all future LGBT sporting events, including the 2010 Gay Games?
"First of all, it tells something about how important it is to have the right organization mixture of highly professional core staff and a lot of great LGBT-activists," Elbaek said. "But what is also important is, to create a very clear, independent organizational structure, which you can see through both money-wise and decision-wise. So the public and the local LGBT community are able to follow what kind of decision the staff and the board makes during the project period."
GLISA Co-President/Director North America Julia Applegate said she was "thrilled" to hear about Copenhagen's financial success.
"Given the global financial crisis and smaller than expected turn out, it was even more exciting to see that the Copenhagen team managed the event so successfully," she said.
Applegate praised Copenhagen for its "combination of professional leadership, collaboration ( both financial and otherwise ) with local government and community organizations, and an amazing group of volunteers proved to be a winning equation."
The next World Outgames will be in 2013 in Antwerp, Belgium.
